What is Culture?

Subculture

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

Counterculture

a group within society that openly rejects and/or actively opposes society's values and norms

folkways

a loosely enforced norm involving common customs, practices, or procedures that ensure 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

Multiculturalism

a policy that values diverse racial, ethnic, national, and linguistic backgrounds and so encourages the retention of cultural differences within society

Culture

The entire way of life for a group of people, including both material and symbollic elements, that act as a lens through which one views the world; it is passed from one generation to the next.

moral holiday

a specified time period during which some norm violations are allowed

Signs

symbols that stand for or convey an idea

language

A system of communication through the use of speech, a collection of sounds understood by a group of people to have the same meaning and perpetuate the culture

Culture Wars

clashes within mainstream society over the values and norms that should be upheld

hegemony

cultural aspects of social control whereby the ideas of the dominant group are accepted by all

Values

ideas about what is right or wrong, good or bad, desirable or worthy in a particular group; they express what the group cherishes and honors

technology

material artifacts and the knowledge and techniques required to use them

mores

norms that carry great moral significance, are closely related to the core values of a cultural group, and often involve severe repercussions for violators

Sanctions

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

Norms

rules or guidelines regarding what kinds of behavior are acceptable and appropriate within a particular culture; these typically emanate from the group's values

cultural diffusion

the dissemination of material and symbolic culture (tools and technology, beliefs and behavior) from one group to another

social control

the formal and informal mechanisms used to elicit conformity to values and norms and thus promote social cohesion

Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis

the idea that language structures thought and that ways of looking at the world are embedded in language

symbolic culture

the ideas associated with a cultural group, including ways of thinking (beliefs, values, and assumptions) and ways of behaving (norms, interactions, and communication)

cultural imperialism

the imposition of one culture's beliefs and practices on another culture through mass media and consumer products rather than by military force

real culture

the norms, values, and patterns of behavior that actually exist within a society (which may or may not correspond to the society's ideals)

ideal culture

the norms, values, and patterns of behavior that members of a society believe should be observed in principle

material culture

the objects associated with a cultural group, such as tools, machines, utensils, buildings, and artwork; any physical object to which we give social meaning

cultural relativism

the principle of understanding other cultures on their own terms rather than judging or evaluating according to one's own culture

ethnocentrism

the principle of using one's own culture as a means or standard by which to evaluate another group or individual other than one's own as abnormal or inferior

cultural leveling

the process by which cultures that were once unique and distinct become increasingly similar

dominant culture

the values, norms, and practices of the group within society that is most powerful (in terms of wealth, prestige, status, influence, etc.)

Gestures

the ways in which people use their bodies to communicate with one another

Laws

types of norms that are formally codified to provide an explicit statement about what is permissible or forbidden, legal or illegal, in a given society