Chapter 3: Culture

ethnocentrism

occurs when people use their own culture as a standard to evaluate another group or individual, leading to the view, that cultures other than their own are abnormal

culture

the entire way of life for a group of people. It is the leans through which we view the world. this is learned and passed through generations by communication

counterculture

a group within society that openly rejects, and may actively oppose, society's values and norms

folkway

a loosely enforced norm that involves common customs, practices, or procedures that ensures smooth social interaction and acceptance.

taboo

a norm ingrained so deeply that even thinking about violating it evokes strong feelings of disgust, horror, or revulsion for most people

more

a norm that carries moral significance, is closely related to the core values of a group, and often involves severe repercussions for violators

sanctions

are positive or negative reactions to the ways that people follow or disobey norms, including rewards for conformity and punishments for norm violators

norms

are the rules regarding what kinds of behavior are acceptable and appropriate within a culture

symbolic culture

includes ways of thinking (beliefs, values, and assumptions) and ways of behaving (norms, interactions, and communication). allows us to communicate through signs, gestures, and language

subculture

is a group within society that is differentiated by its distinctive values, norms, and lifestyles

dominant culture

refers to the values, norms, and practices of the group within society that is most powerful in terms of wealth, prestige, status, and influence

hegemony

when the dominant culture succeeds in imposing its values and ideas on all of society

sapir-whorf hypothesis

which is the idea that language structures thought and that ways of looking at the world are embedded in language, is based on this premise.