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Assignment on Basics of Social Science in Culture www.AssignmentPoint.com www.AssignmentPoint.com Definition of Culture: Culture is the quality in a person or society that arises from a concern for what is viewed as excellent in arts, letters, manners, scholarly search, etc. Culture is the systems of knowledge shared by a relatively a large group of people. Culture is the system of shared beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifact that the members of society use to cope with their world and with one another, and that are transmitted from generation to generation through learning. Characteristics of Culture: 1) Culture is Social: Culture does not exist in isolation/separation. It is a product of a society. It develops through social interaction. No man can acquire culture without association with others. Man becomes a man only among men. 2) Culture is Shared: Culture is something that an individual can posses. Culture in sociological sense is shared. For example, customs, traditions, beliefs, ideas, values, moral etc. are all shared by people of group or society. 3) Culture is Learnt: Culture is not inborn. It is learnt. Culture is often called “learned ways of behavior”. Unlearned behavior is not culture. But, shaking hands, saying thanks or “Assalam walaikum”, dressing etc. are cultural behavior. 4) Culture is Transmissive: Culture is transmissive as it is transmitted from one generation to another. Language is the main vehicle of culture. Language in different form makes it possible for the present generation to understand the achievement of earlier generations. Transmission of culture may take place by imitation as well as by instruction. 5) Culture is Continuous & Cumulative: Culture exists as a continuous process. In its historical growth it tends to become cumulative/ increasing. It becomes difficult for us to imagine what society would be like without culture. 6) Culture Varies from Society to Society: Every society has a culture of its own. It differs from society to society. Culture of every society is unique to itself. Cultures are not uniform. Cultural elements like customs, traditions, morale, values, beliefs are not uniform everywhere. Culture varies from time to time also. 7) Culture is Dynamic: No culture ever remains constant or changeless. It is subject to slow but constant change. Culture is responsive to the changing conditions of the physical world. Hence culture is dynamic. www.AssignmentPoint.com 8) Culture is Acceptable: Culture provides proper opportunities for the satisfaction of our needs and desires. Our needs both biological and social are fulfilled in the cultural ways. Culture determines and guides various activities of man. Thus, culture is defined as the process through which human beings satisfy their wants. Elements of Culture: 1) Language: language is the foundation of every culture. Language is an abstract system of word meaning and symbols for all aspects of culture. It includes speech, numerical symbols, written character, non-verbal gesture and expression. The various languages are essentially an important part of the culture. Language can shape how we see, taste, smell, feel and hear. It also influences the way we think about the people, ideas and objects around us. Language communicates a culture’s most important norms, values and sanctions to people. That’s why the introduction of new language into a society is such sensitive issue in many parts of the world. 2) Non-verbal communication: Non-verbal communication is a process of sending and receiving messages without using words, either spoken or written. Non-verbal communication can make or break a speech; if the presenter is speaking with a monotone voice and has poor body language the audience may not find the presentation as interesting. 3) Norms: Norms are the established standards of behavior maintained by a society. For example, “wash your hand before dinner” or “Respect your elder”. This sociological term has been defined as "the rules that a group uses for appropriate and inappropriate values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviors”. These rules may be explicit or implicit. They have also been described as the "customary rules of behavior that coordinate our interactions with others. There are basically four types of Norms. Such as: a) Formal Norms: Formal norms generally have been written down and specify strict punishment for violators. Laws are the formal example of formal norms. If anyone violate Laws or even try to break the laws, then he/she will get punishment. b) Informal Norms: Informal Norms are generally understood but not precisely recorded. For example- Standards of proper dress. Basically, in our society, there are no specific punishment for a breaking any informal norms. c) Morays: It is also known as Mores. Mores are strict norms that control moral and ethical behavior. Mores are norms based on definitions of right and wrong. Unlike folkways, mores are morally significant. People feel strongly about them and violating them typically results in disapproval. d) Folkways: Folkways are often referred to as "customs" or civilization or society. They are standards of behavior that are socially approved but not morally significant. They are norms for www.AssignmentPoint.com everyday behavior that people follow for the sake of tradition or convenience. Breaking a folkway does not usually have serious consequences. 4) Sanction: Sanction is punishments or rewards for conduct concerning a social norm. Conformity to a norm can lead to positive sanctions such as a pay raise a medal, a word of gratitude or a pat on the back. A negative sanction includes fines, threats or even imprisonment. 5) Values: Important and lasting beliefs which is shared by the members of a culture about what is good or bad and desirable or undesirable. Values have major influence on a person's behavior and attitude and serve as broad guidelines in all situations. Some common business values are fairness, innovation and community involvement. Definition of Crime: Crime is an action or exception which constitutes an offence and is punishable by law. Crime is a violation of a law in which there is injury to the public or a member of the public and a term in jail or prison, and a fine as possible punishments. In a simple sense, Crime is illegal or immoral activities. A crime is defined as any act that is different to legal code or laws. Types of Crime: There are various types of crimes. Such as: 1) Victimless Crime: Sociologists use the term victimless crime to describe the willing exchange among adults of widely desired but illegal, goods and services. For example:- Prostitution, drug abuse, gambling etc. 2) Professional Crime: Professional crime is when someone uses special skills, experience, methods or instruments to commit a crime while considering the activity to be their basic occupation or as a main or additional source of income. The most common type is fraud, and all professional crime is for personal gain. 3) Organized Crime: Organized crime is to be the work of a group that regulates relative among criminal enterprise involved in illegal activities, including prostitutions, gambling, smuggling and sell of illegal drugs. Organized crime dominates the world of illegal business just as large corporations dominate the conventional business world. It allocates territory, sets price and acts. Organized crime serves as a means of upward mobility for groups of people struggling to escape poverty. www.AssignmentPoint.com 4) Transnational Crime: Transnational crime occurs across multiple national borders. In the 20th century, transnational crime grew to embrace trafficking in endangered species, drugs and stolen art. There are different types of transnational crime. Such as: Computer crime/ cyber crime Environmental crime Illegal drug trade Hijacking of airplanes Sea piracy Terrorism Theft of art and cultural object 5) White-collar and Technology based Crime: In white-collar crime, illegal acts committed in the course of business activities, often by wealthy ‘respectable’ people. For example: Stock manipulation, consumer fraud, corruption etc. A new type of white-collar crime has emerged I recent decade and that is computer crime. The use of high technology allows criminals to carry out electronic fraud. Bureaucracy: A bureaucracy is a way of administratively organizing large numbers of people who need to work together. Organizations in the public and private sector, including universities and governments, rely on bureaucracies to function. The term bureaucracy literally means “rule by desks or offices,” a definition that highlights the often impersonal character of bureaucracies. Even though bureaucracies sometimes seem inefficient or wasteful, setting up a bureaucracy helps ensure that thousands of people work together in compatible ways by defining everyone’s roles within a hierarchy. In a simple sense, a bureaucracy is a component of formal organization that uses rules and hierarchical ranking to achieve efficiency. Characteristics of Bureaucracy: 1) Division of Labor: Division of labor means specialized exports perform their tasks. The positive consequence is that it produces efficiency in a large scale corporation. The negative consequences for all individual are that it produces trained incapacity and for all organization it produces a narrow perspective. www.AssignmentPoint.com 2) Hierarchy of Authority: The word “Hierarchy” means ‘chain of command’. Bureaucracy follows the principle of hierarchy. It also means that each position is under the supervision of a higher authority. 3) Written Rules & Regulation: Rules and regulations are important characteristics of bureaucracies. Through written rules and regulation, bureaucracies generally offer employees a clear standard of an adequate performance. Producers provide a valuable sense of continuity in a bureaucracy. 4) Impersonality: Impersonality means, absence of human character or of the personality associated with the human character. The positive consequence of impersonality is that it reduces favoritism/unfairness. The negative consequence is that it contributes to feelings of isolation. In organization, it discourages loyalty to company. 5) Employment based on Technical Qualification: It discourages favoritism and reduces little rivalries. For example, college faculty members are ideally hired and promoted according to their professional based qualifications, including degrees corned and research published, rather than because of whom they know. Family: In a simple sense, family can be defined as, a group of people who live together and are related to one another, usually consisting of parents and children. Function of Family: 1) Socialization: Parents and other kin monitor a child’s behavior and transmit the norms, values and language of their culture to the child. 2) Reproduction: For a society to maintain itself, it must replace dying members. In this sense, the family contributes to human survival through it’s function. 3) Protection: In all cultures, the family assumes the ultimate responsibility for the protection and upbringing of children. 4) Regulation of Sexual Behavior: Sexual norms are subject to change both over time. However, whatever the time period or cultural values of a society, standards of sexual behavior are most clearly defined within the family circles. 5) Affection of Companionship: Ideally, the family provides member with warm and family relationships, helping them to feel satisfied and secure. Of course, a family member may find such rewards outside the family- from peers, in school, at work- and may even see the home as an unpleasant or abusive setting. Nevertheless, we expect our relatives to understand us, to care for us and to be there for us when we need them. www.AssignmentPoint.com 6) Provision of Social Status: We inherit a social position because of the family background and reputation of our parents and siblings. The family presents the newborn child with an ascribed based on race and ethnicity that helps to determine his or her place within society’s stratification system. Moreover, family resources affect children’s ability to pursue certain opportunities, such as higher education. 7) Religion: Family is the centre of all religious activities. All the family members offer their prayers together and observe different religious rites, rituals and practices jointly. All the members believe in a particular religion and observe religious ceremonies at home. Children learn different religious values from their parents. Living in spiritual atmosphere spirituality develops among the children. Family transmits religious beliefs and practices from one generation to another. 8) Culture: Family also performs several cultural functions as well. It preserves different cultural traits. Man learns and acquires culture from family and transmits it to following generations. That is why family is considered as centre of culture. 9) Education: Family performs many educational functions for its members. As a primary educational institution that family used to teach letters, knowledge, skill and trade secret to all its members. It looks after the primary education of its members and moulds their career and character. Mother act as the first and best teacher of a child. Besides he learns all sorts of informal education such as discipline, obedience, manners etc. from family. 10) Economic: Since ancient times family has been performing several economic functions. It is an important economic unit. In ancient time family was both a production and utilization unit. It used to fulfill almost all the economic needs of its members such as food, clothing, housing etc. In the then days family was self- sufficient. But now a day’s almost all the economic functions of family is performed by other agencies and family only remain as a consumption unit. It does not produce anything. Socialization: Socialization is a continuing process whereby an individual gain a personal identity and learns the norms, values, behavior, and social skills appropriate to his or her social position. It is important for personality development. In a simple sense, Socialization is a process of learning one's culture and how to live within it. Role of Socialization: 1) Family: The family is the most important agent of socialization because it is the center of the child's life, as children are totally dependent on others. Not all socialization is intentional, it depends on the surrounding. The most profound affect is gender socialization; however the www.AssignmentPoint.com family also bears the task of teaching children cultural values and attitudes about themselves and others. Children learn continuously from the environment that adults create. Children also become aware of class at a very early age and assign different values to each class accordingly. 2) Religion: Agents of socialization differ in effects across religious traditions. Some believe religion is like a cultural category, making it less likely for the individuals to break from religious relationship and be more socialized in this setting. Parental religious participation is the most influential part of religious socialization- more so than religious peers or religious beliefs. 3) Peer Group: In a simple Sense, A peer group is social groups whose members are in similar age and have interests, social positions. This is where children can escape supervision and learn to form relationships on their own. The influence of the peer group typically peaks during teenage years however peer groups generally only affect short term interests unlike the family which has long term influence. 4) Workplace: Workplace is another agent of socialization. Just as the children spend a important part of day at their school, the adults spend much of their day at their workplace. At the workplace, a person meets people of different age groups and belonging to different social and cultural backgrounds. This makes him come in close contact with different thought processes, belief systems, etc. The interaction that then happens helps a person to broaden his/her perspective in terms of social acceptance and tolerance towards the others. It also sometimes helps in changing the notions of 'right' and 'wrong' 5) Mass Media: Mass media refers to the distribution of impersonal information to a wide audience, such as what happens via television, newspapers, radio, and the Internet. With the average person spending over four hours a day in front of the TV and children averaging even more screen time, media greatly influences social norms. People learn about objects of material culture (like new technology and transportation options), as well as nonmaterial culture—what is true (beliefs), what is important (values), and what is expected (norms). Social Structure: www.AssignmentPoint.com Social structure is the organized pattern of social relationships and social institutions that together create society. Social structures are not immediately visible to the untrained observer; however they are present and affect all dimensions of human experience in society. Elements of Social Structure: 1) Social Institutions: An institution is an established and lasting pattern of social relationships. The five traditional institutions are family, religion, politics, economics, and education. But, some sociologists argue that other social institutions, such as science and technology, mass media, medicine, sport, and the military, also play important roles in modern society. Many social problems are generated by shortage in various institutions. 2) Groups: A social group may be defined as two or more people who have a common identity, interact, and form a social relationship. For example, the family in which you were reared is a social group that is part of the family institution. There two types of groups, such as primary or secondary. Primary groups, which tend to involve small numbers of individuals, are characterized by near and familiar communication. Families and friends are examples of primary groups. Secondary groups, which may involve small or large numbers of individuals, are task-oriented and characterized by impersonal/unfriendly and formal communication. Examples of secondary groups include employers and their employees and clerks and their customers. 3) Statuses: A status is a position of a person who lives in a social group. The statuses we live in largely define our social identity. The statuses in a family may consist of mother, father, stepmother, stepfather, wife, husband, child, and so on. Statuses may be either ascribed or achieved. There are two types of Statuses; such as: i) Ascribed Status: An ascribed status is one that society assigns to an individual on the basis of factors over which the individual has no control. For example, we have no control over the sex, race, ethnic background, and socioeconomic status into which we are born. ii) Achieved Status: A social status gained through voluntary action or achievement, or the lack thereof. Examples: the status of a college dropout, army officer, wife. 4) Social Roles: A social role is a set of expectations for people who live in a given social position or status. Roles guide our behavior and allow us to predict the behavior of others. Roles are significant component of social structure. It contributes to a society’s stability by enabling members to anticipate the behavior of others and to pattern their own actions accordingly. Role Conflict occurs when in the situation in which a person with two or more roles finds that the roles’ expected behaviors and attitudes do not engage well. 5) Social Networks: In a simple sense, social network is a network of social connections and personal relationships. A social network represents relationships and flows between people, groups, organizations, computers or other information/knowledge processing units. Involvement in social networks- commonly known as networking- is especially valuable in finding employment. www.AssignmentPoint.com