Download what is culture - Libertyville High School

WHAT IS CULTURE?
Imagine that you have just been hired
for a job that requires you to do business
in another country. You have never been
in this area of the world before. Consider
what concerns you might have. What
time will you arrive for your first
business meeting? What will you wear?
How will you greet the business people
you will be meeting? These questions
may not seem important, but even small
components of daily life are vastly
different across cultures. Besides doing
business, why else is it important to
understand culture of various groups or
societies?
So what exactly is culture? Culture is the
way in which a society lives and is
organized. It is everything that people
have, think, and do as members of their
society. It is the beliefs, values, and
behaviors of the people. If you had to
explain your culture to someone else,
what would you describe? You might
discuss your clothing, music, sports,
school, family, and leisure activities. Or
you might discuss your ideas, belief
systems, traditions, morals, laws, values,
and attitudes.
Main Components of Culture
There are six main components that
distinguish a culture in addition to
government and economic policies. One
of these components is social
organization, which includes family
structure and social class. How are
people arranged into groups? Who lives
together, in what types of housing,
under what sanitary conditions, and
how close together? How do the people
relate to one another? Are family, race,
religion, ethnicity, or other factors of
high importance? How do people live
day to day? What are their daily
customs?
Culture also includes the social norms of
a group of people. Social norms are
customary rules that govern people’s
behaviors, and can vary among cultures.
What behaviors are acceptable and in
what situations? What behaviors are
unacceptable? What do certain gestures
or uses body language mean?
A third component of culture includes
language and symbols. Is there one
language spoken? Many languages?
What are the origins of the languages?
Are there different dialects? What
symbols represent the values and beliefs
of a group of people?
Another component of culture involves
learning and technology. How are the
people educated? Who attends school,
and what is taught? Who determines
what is taught in schools, and who
teaches it? What technologies do the
people use in everyday life? How
“advanced” is society?
The paintings, sculptures, music,
architecture, and literature of a society
are also part of its culture. What styles
are used? What is the purpose of the
works of art or literature?
Lastly, religion and spiritual beliefs are
significant components of a culture.
What do the people believe in? How and
whom do they worship? Do the people
have a structured religious system? Is
practicing religion mandatory or
optional? How are those with different
beliefs treated by the majority? How do
beliefs affect everyday life?
All six of these components together can
make a culture unique from other
cultures. However, these components do
not always remain the same across time.
Cultural Interaction
In the modern world, most cultures are
not isolated or stagnant. Cultures are
growing, changing, and interacting with
one another. One example of the
interaction of cultures is cultural
diffusion, in which ideas, people, and
products are exchanged among different
societies. This can occur in many ways,
but most often through trade. The
process of cultural diffusion alters
political, economic, and social systems
and may result in conflicts or tensions
due to this cultural change.
There different types of cultural
diffusion, direct and indirect. Direct
diffusion occurs when two cultures live
close to one another and therefore have
direct contact. Over time the cultures
intermingle, such as through trade,
intermarriage, or possibly warfare.
Forced diffusion occurs when one
culture defeats another and forces its
beliefs or customs onto the conquered
people. However, sometimes two
cultures that share ideas never are in
contact with one another. When cultural
beliefs and ideas are spread through a
middleman or a third culture, this is
known as indirect diffusion. Mass media
and technology such as the Internet are
major factors in promoting this type of
cultural diffusion today.
of cultural diffusion include access to
new information and ideas, access to
different products or technologies,
expansion of trade, and cooperation for
the common good. However, cultural
diffusion can also have negative impacts.
For example, cultural
misunderstandings can lead to
aggression and hostility between groups
of people. This conflict can contribute to
warfare, discrimination, or oppression.
Ethnocentrism occurs when people
judge other cultures by their own
culture’s standards. They may see their
own culture as superior and be
intolerant of different groups of people.
Racism is a negative result of cultural
diffusion in that one racial group may
see itself as superior to other races.
Forced diffusion can result in the loss of
an entire culture, including its language,
religion, traditions, literature, or art.
People may lose their cultural identity.
Effects of Cultural Interaction
What impacts does cultural interaction
have on societies? Some positive effects
Source: www.HomeEducationResources.com