culture

Symbols

"anything that carries a particular meaning recognized by people who share a culture; Humans turn aspects of the world into symbols as a way to establish meaning

social control

"attempts by society to regulate people's thoughts and behavior; sanctions: rewards or punishments that encourage conformity to cultural norms ; As we learn cultural norms, we gain the capacity to evaluate our own behavior; Only cultural creatures can feel guilt or shame. twain human are the only animals that blush or need to

culture shcok

a personal disorientation when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life Symbols, Language, Values and Beliefs, Norms, Material Cultural, Technology)

technology

knowledge that people use to make a way of life in their surroundings; technology is part of the nonmaterial culture, but it informs material culture.; Material culture reflects a society's technology

norms

rules and expectations by which a society guides the behavior of its members; taboos: norms widely observed great moral signifigance; folkways: norms for routine or casual interaction

Nonmaterial Culture

the ideas created by members of a society ex:Language- system of symbols that allow people to communicate Technology- knowledge that people use to make a way of life in their surroundings

Material Culture

the physical things created by members of a society; Artifacts- the range of physical human creations of a society Artifacts reflect underlying cultural values and culture technology

Cultural transmission

the process by which one generation passes culture to the next; oral cultural tradition

communication

the process of interchanging meaning

prescriptive norms

what you should do

proscriptive norms

what you should not do

cultural diversity

Cultural diversity exists when groups in a society rely on different cultural patterns. Cultural diversity can stem from immigration. It can also stem from social class.

culture

Culture refers to the shared ways of life of a group of people; "the ways of thinking, the ways of acting, and the material objects that together form a people's way of life" (Macionis 2010: 58). A second definition- the values held by the members of a given group, the languages they speak, the symbols they revere, the norms they follow, and the material objects they create; Culture refers to a shared way of life, while a society is the organized interaction of people who live some specific territory (perhaps a nation)

Language

Language is the key to culture; system of symbols that allows people to communicate with one another

sapir-whorf thesis

People see and understand world through language. Language determines reality.

values

culturally defined standards that people use to decide what is desirable, good, and beautiful and that serve as broad guidelines for social living; Values are abstract standards of goodness

cultural diversity

society have multiple cultures; Small societies tend to be culturally uniform; industrialized societies tend to be culturally diverse Language is an indicator of culture (7,000 languages) (if we define culture solely in terms of language) globalization has resulted in a decrease in the number of cultures

beliefs

specific thoughts or ideas that people hold to be true" ; are particular matters that individuals consider true or false; Values can change (hardwork/leisure); Values can conflict (equality/race)