Ch 3 Flashcards
A people’s way of life—consisting of material objects as well as the patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving—that is passed from generation to generation among members of a society
Culture
Rules defining appropriate and inappropriate behaviors
Norms
Norms without moral overtones
Folkways
Norms that have great moral significance and that should be followed by the members of a society
Mores
A norm so important that its violation is considered repugnant
Taboo
Norms that are formally defined and enforced by officials
Laws
Rewards/punishments used to encourage conformity to norms
Sanctions
Sanctions that can be only be given by officially designated persons
Formal sanctions
Sanctions that can be applied by most members of society
Informal sanctions
Broad cultural standards that many people in a society consider desirable
Values
Cultural guidelines publicly embraced by members of a society
Ideal culture
Actual behavior patterns exhibited by members of a society
Real culture
Things that stand for, or represent, something else—can range from physical objects to words, sounds, smells, and tastes
Symbols
Process of thinking, knowing, or processing information
Cognition
Ideas concerning the nature of reality
Beliefs
The norms, values, and beliefs of a group of people
Nonmaterial culture
The concrete, tangible objects within a culture
Material culture
The idea that one’s perception of reality is based on language
Hypothesis of linguistic relativity
Group of persons who share a social characteristic such as age, sex, or religion
Social catergory
Group that is part of the dominant culture but differs from it in some important respects
Subculture
An approach that accents the viewpoints, experiences, and contributions of women and diverse ethnic and racial minorities (women as well as ethnic and racial minorities)
Multiculturism
A subculture that is deliberately and consciously opposed to certain central aspects of the dominant culture
Counterculture
The illegal use of violence or threats of violence to intimidate a government, group, or individual in pursuit of a political, religious, economic, or social goal
Terrorism
The tendency to judge others in relation to one’s own cultural standards
Ethnocentrism
Psychological and social stress experienced when confronted with a radically different cultural environment
Culture shock
The idea that any given aspect of a particular culture should be evaluated in relation to its place within the larder cultural context of which it is a part rather than according to some alleged universal standard that is applied across all cultures
Culture relativism
The idea that morality (right or wrong) depends on the norms of the group or society in which they exist
Ethical relativism
General cultural traits thought to exist in all known cultures
Cultural universals
The widely varying, often distinctive ways societies demonstrate cultural universals
Cultural particulars
People who live within defined territorial borders and participate in a common culture
Society
