Chapter 9: Culture

Question 1

What is Culture?

Answer 1

set of learned behaviors and ideas including beliefs, values, and ideas that are characteristics of a particular society or other social group.

Cultural change may be gradual or rapid

Question 2

Ethnocentric

Answer 2

The tendency to view one’s own culture as best and to judge the behavior and beliefs of culturally different people by one’s own standards. India see cows as a sacred animal but we eat Cheeseburgers all the time

Question 3

Cultural Relativism

Answer 3

Cultural Diversity! The attitude that a society’s customs and ideas should be viewed within the content of that society problems. Anthropologists are uncomfortable with strong form of cultural relativism that suggests all patterns of culture are equally valid. OPEN MINDED

Question 4

Norms

Answer 4

standards about what is acceptable behavior

Question 5

Direct Constraint

Answer 5

more obvious, punishment, or subject to ridicule or social isolation. Ex: Getting Arrested

Question 6

Indirect Constraint

Answer 6

less obvious, no laws, just not doing acceptable behavior that makes life miserable for you Ex: Cramming before an exam, Dr. Kuba keeping her maiden name and not wanting to know the sex of her baby

Question 7

Cultural Adaptive

Answer 7

the customs of a society that enhances survival and reproduction likely to persist. Breast-feeding and 2 year ban on sex in tropics.

Question 8

Maldaptive

Answer 8

diminish the chances of survival and reproduction likely to disappear

Question 9

Direct Observation

Answer 9

Discovering cultural patterns through interviews, watching people and recording their behavior on the spot

Question 10

Participant Observation

Answer 10

Done when dealing with a domain of behavior that include individual variations or people unaware of their pattern of behavior collects larger sample; Joining group with daily activities.