Chapter 3 Flashcards
Culture
(Tool Box) defined as learned and shared behaviors, beliefs, attitude, values, and material objects that characterize a particular group or society
Society
Organized population who see themselves as a social unit
Symbols
Anything that stands for something else, and has a particular meaning for people who share a culture
Material culture
The tangible objects that members of society make,use, and share
Non-material Culture
the shared set of meanings that people in a society use to interpret and understand the world
Language
System of shared symbols that enables people to communicate with one another
Co-habitation
(Shacking Up) when people live together without being married but have an intimate relationship
Values
Standards that provide general guideline for behavior
Norms
represents a particular society’s rules for behavior (Ought behaviors)
Folkways
Rules members of society see as important, but are not seen as critical
Mores
Norms that members of a society consider very important because they maintain moral and ethical behavior
Law
Rigid norms strictly enforced by society, formal rules about behavior
Taboo
Strong prohibitions of any act that is considered to be extremely offensive and forbidden because of social customs, religious or moral beliefs and laws
Sanctions
Rewards for good or appropriate behavior and/or penalties for bad or inappropriate behavior
Cultural universal
customs and practices tat are common to all societies
Ideal culture
Is the beliefs, values, and norms that people say they hold (what we say)
Real culture
are a society’s actual everyday behavior (What you do)
Culture shock
State of confusion and uncertainty that accompanies exposure to an unfamiliar way of life or environment
Ethnocentrism
beliefs that one’s culture and way of life are superior to those of other groups
Popular Culture
Refers to beliefs, practices, activities and products that are widely shared within a population in everyday
Mass media
Form of communication designed to reach large number of people
Cultural relativism
Refers to recognizing that no culture is better than another and that a culture should be judged by its own standards
Multi-culturalism
(Cultural pluralism) refers to the coexistence of many cultures in the same geographic are, without any one culture dominating another
Subculture
a group of people whose distinctive ways of thinking, feelings, and acting differ somewhat from those of the larger society
Counterculture
a group of people who deliberately oppose and consciously reject some of the basic beliefs, value, and norms of the dominant culture
Cultural Change
Is caused by diffusion, innovation, discovery, external pressures, and changing physical environment
Cultural imperialism
When the cultural values and products of one nations influence or dominate those of another country
Functionalists
View culture in terms of its role in social integration, similar norms and values create solidarity and stability in a culture
Conflict theorists
Argue that US culture and others suffer from widespread inequality
Feminism
Perspective emphasizes how gender can lead to women experiencing culture differently gender, race/ethnicity, and social class
Symbolic interactionists
(Micro-level) focus on hows people interpret culture, transmit norms an values through social interaction
Serendipity effect
Discoveries is done by chance
Cultural lag
gap when non-materialist cultures change more slowly then materialist cultures
