Cultural assignment

elements,.of culture

Terms in this set (8)

Religion. Beliefs of a society, some traditions.

Art. Architecture, style.

Politics. Government and laws of a culture (rules and leadership)

Language. Communication system of a culture (speech, writing, symbols)

Economy. ...

Customs. ...

Society. ...

Geography.

In summary, some of the common elements that make up individual cultures are symbols, language, values, and norms. A symbol is anything that is used to stand for something else. People who share a culture often attach a specific meaning to an object, gesture, sound, or image.Sep 28, 2016

According to Robert E. Quinn and Kim S. Cameron at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, there are four types of organizational culture: Clan, Adhocracy, Market, and Hierarchy.May 1

Functions of culture

culture is the unique possession of man. No one can develop human qualities without culture. Culture distinguishes, leads, changes the personality of the individual and structure of the group contributing to an individual’s sense of self and

sense of community; providing a sense of security;

establishing and enforcing social norms; providing

meaning, purpose, and structure in individuals’ lives)

theories of culture

Culture: Theories of Culture

Investigations have arisen from belief in many different theories of culture and have often given voice to new theoretical bases for approaching the elusive term. Many early anthropologists conceived of culture as a collection of traits and studied the diffusion, or spread, of these traits from one society to another. Critics of diffusionism, however, pointed out that the theory failed to explain why certain traits spread and others do not. Cultural evolution theory holds that traits have a certain meaning in the context of evolutionary stages, and they look for relationships between material culture and social institutions and beliefs. These theorists classify cultures according to their relative degree of social complexity and employ several economic distinctions (foraging, hunting, farming, and industrial societies) or political distinctions (autonomous villages, chiefdoms, and states). Critics of this theory argue that the use of evolution as an explanatory metaphor is flawed, because it tends to assume a certain direction of development, with an implicit apex at modern, industrial society. Ecological approaches explain the different ways that people live around the world not in terms of their degree of evolution but rather as distinct adaptations to the variety of environments in which they live. They also demonstrate how ecological factors may lead to cultural change, such as the development of technological means to harness the environment. Structural-functionalists posit society as an integration of institutions (such as family and government), defining culture as a system of normative beliefs that reinforces social institutions. Some criticize this view, which suggests that societies are naturally stable (see functionalism ). Historical-particularists look upon each culture as a unique result of its own historical processes. Symbolic anthropology looks at how people's mental constructs guide their lives. Structuralists analyze the relationships among cultural constructs of different societies, deriving universal mental patterns and processes from the abstract models of these relationships. They theorize that such patterns exist independent of, and often at odds with, practical behavior. Many theories of culture have been criticized for assuming, intentionally or otherwise, that all people in any one society experience their culture in the same way. Today, many anthropologists view social order as a fragile accomplishment that various members of a society work at explaining, enforcing, exploiting, or resisting. They have turned away from the notion of elusive  laws  of culture that often characterizes cross-cultural analyses to the study of the concrete historical, political, and economic forces that structure the relations among cultures. Important theorists on culture have included Franz  Boas  , Emile Durkheim , Ruth Benedict , and Clifford Geertz

the influences of perceptions, on culture

Perception refers to how we interpret stimuli such as people, things, or events. Our perception is important to recognize because it is the driving force behind our reaction to things. Heredity, needs, peer group, interests, and expectations all influence our perception.

Cultural perception is how an individual's culture affects the way he or she's see the world. Since culture informs all areas of life (including the arts, thought, religion, language, food, etc.), perception (how they see the world) is significantly impacted by culture.Aug 26, 2017

Socio-cultural factors influence our perceptions by generating differential familiarity and salience of stimuli as well as certain habits of perception. People living in different cultural settings have varying perceptions like identification of objects and interpretation of depth.Jun 18, 2010

They also point to wide variation in susceptibility to the illusion, across populations and age groups. The data can be interpreted as proof of strong cultural influences on perception. However, the causal link is indirect: material culture influences the visual environment, which in turn impacts the visual system.Feb 9, 2009

That construction is influenced by several factors. Influences on perception include past experiences, education, values, culture, preconceived notions, and present circumstances. In the end, the perception you construct becomes your reality.

the influences of behaviours on culture

Psychological processes influence culture. Culture influences psychological processes. Individual thoughts and actions influence cultural norms and practices as they evolve over time, and these cultural norms and practices influence the thoughts and actions of individuals.Feb 4, 2004

Culture is basically a way of life. No, really, it is defined as the way of life of a group of people. It includes their beliefs, their values, their customs, their traditions, their heritage, their language, their artistic expressions…etc. Most of these are practices, and all of them affect behaviour.

Basically, you view the world and react to it based on your culture. This reaction can be in the form of behaviour, or could influence behaviour. For example, certain values that your culture has makes interpret the behaviour of others based on it. In some cultures, they view opening a present in front of the presenter as a sign that you are happy to receive a gift from them, while in other cultures they view it as a sign of your greed. Those values can also reflect on behaviour, it informs you whether you should open the present or keep it until later.

As for ethnicity. This depends on what you mean by ethnicity. Some people confuse ethnicity with race, if this is what you mean then it should, in theory, not affect your behaviour unless your culture has certain norms regarding race (pre-Apartheid South Africa for example).

If on the other hand, by ethnicity you mean a social group that shares a common and distinctive culture, religion, language, or the like (definition from  dictionary.com ), then it can have a profound effect on behaviour. In this definition, culture is part of ethnicity, and thus would have an effect on behaviour accordingly.