UCSP | Elements, Variations, and Layers of Culture

Culture

beliefs, values, behaviors, and objects shared by a common group

Culture According to Edward B. Tylor

“that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society”

Symbols

anything that meaningfully represents something

Language

system of words used to communicate with others, including verbal and non-verbal communication

Values

culturally defined standards for what is good and desirable

Norms

culturally defined expectations of behaviors

Cultural Variation

ways by which culture differs and can come in a variation of forms

Proxemics

also known as personal space, it is the distance two people are comfortable being in

Food Ways

eating habits and culinary practices of a people, region, or historical period

Areas of Cultural Variation

• Language

• Religion

• Music

• Customs/Traditions

• Dance

• Clothing

• Celebrations

• Food

Characteristics of Culture

• Learned

• Normative

• Socially Transmitted

• Shared

• Relative & Adaptive

Culture as Learned

culture is always learned and acquired, never biologically inherited

Enculturation

the process by which people learn their own culture through the transmission between generations

Acculturation

the process by which people learn others’ cultures and assimilates it into their own

Culture as Normative

it sets its standards of behaviors that guides people to act accordingly

Culture as Socially Transmitted

it is passed through social interaction, usually through language. It can be done through imitation or instruction.

Culture as Shared

It is not something that an individual alone possesses as beliefs traditions, customs are always shared among groups of people

Culture as Relative and Adaptive

Cultures vary from one society to another and what is considered acceptable in one may not be in another. Cultures also change over periods of time.

Layers of Culture

1. Cultural Traditions

2. Sub-culture

3. Cultural Universals

Cultural Traditions

distinguishes one’s society from the others, highly exclusive

Sub-culture

• a cultural group within a larger culture, having beliefs and interest different from those of the larger culture

• the retained original original cultural traditions of people who belong to another society, common for diaspora and the ethnolinguistic group one identifies with

Cultural Universals

shared behavior patterns; common to all regardless of place they live in

Examples of Cultural Universals

• Verbal language communication

• Classifying people according to age and gender

• Classifying people based on kinship and social status

• Division of labor based on gender

• Regulating rules for social behavior

• Body ornaments

• Recreational Activities

• Art

• Child rearing based on specific family setting

• Concept of privacy