People and Culture: Week 1 - 6 quiz

Question 1

What is the definition of culture?

Answer 1

Any kind of socially transmitted information (rather than biologically transmitted) that influences behaviors. Culture can be an idea, belief, practice, technology etc., that we engage in because we have learned it from others.

A group of people who share a context (geographical, historical, linguistic) who tend to be exposed to the same information, consequently, share their beliefs and behaviors, which facilitate their interactions;

May foster a shared identity who they are (or not)

Question 2

Define Social influence

Answer 2

Social influence involves intentional and unintentional efforts to change another person’s beliefs, attitudes, or behaviour. Unlike persuasion, which is typically intentional and requires some degree of awareness on the part of the target, social influence may be inadvertent or accidental.

Question 3

Criteria for the presence of animal culture

Answer 3

1. The behaviour is socially learned
2. The behaviour is common within groups and unique across groups.
3. The behaviour is not due to an environmental uniqueness (e.g., a hot spring is nearby)

Question 4

Conformity definition

Answer 4

• Compliance with standards, rules, or laws.

- Behaviour in accordance with socially accepted conventions.

Question 5

What are the 2 different types of culture and what are the definitions

Answer 5

Evoked culture:

Cultural traits based directly on ecology & geography

Transmitted cultures:

Transmitted cultures are socially transmitted (e.g., parents to kids).

Question 6

What is Ecology?

Answer 6

Ecology is the study of the environment, and helps us understand how organisms live with each other in unique physical environments.

Question 7

Define the ‘ratchet effect’

Answer 7

A ratchet effect is an example of the restricted ability of human processes to reverse once a specific thing has happened, analogous to the mechanical ratchet that keeps the spring tight when a clock is wound

Question 8

Cumulative cultural learning definition

Answer 8

Cumulative cultural learning is psychologically prepared by a set of adaptations that facilitate the transmission and acquisition of information within and across generations

Social learning makes possible cumulative cultural learning (~ the
ratchet effect), which is accelerated by the growth in size and
interconnectivity within the human population

Question 9

Theory of mind definition

Answer 9

• Understanding that other people have mental states.

- Develops at 13-15 months of age.

Question 10

Cultural Socialization definition

Answer 10

• The passing of knowledge and practices through explicit and implicit ways
• Active interaction between the caregiver(s) and the child.

‘The goal of Socialization is to become a competent member of society’.

Family environment Is especially influential in cultural socialization

Question 11

What is HAP and LAP?

Answer 11

Firstly they are both under the model of ‘ideal affects’

HAP -High arousal positive.
-	Excited smile
-	Exciting activities 
-	‘Influence Goals” ‐ assert personal needs and change others’ behaviors to meet own needs
LAP – Low arousal positive
-	Quieter smile 
-	Quieter activities 
-	‘Adjustment Goals’ ‐ suppress personal needs and change own behaviors to meet others’ needs.

Question 12

What are the main categories of Self-concepts?

Answer 12

• Individual Self (Personal characteristics)
• Relational Self (Family roles, specific relationship)
• Collective self (Group memberships)

Question 13

What are the two contrasting models of bicultural identity?

Answer 13

• Unidimensional view: The unidimensional view suggests that bicultural people are “caught between two worlds”, receiving incompatible pressures.
• Bi-dimensional view: The bi-dimensional view suggests that bicultural people could feel attachments to two cultures and draw resources from both

Question 14

Definition of Essentialism

Answer 14

Essentialism is a belief that ‘there are differences between social groups that are inherent and stable, thus unchangeable.

Question 15

Biological essentialism

Answer 15

Biological essentialism says ‘the differences between the social groups are biologically based and thus unchangeable.
Biological essentialism is especially damaging when they are used to justify an unjust system. Social constructionist approaches (asserting that group differences are constructed by people as a justification) can be valuable in trying to undo the effects of biological essentialism.

Question 16

Definition of Intersectionality?

Answer 16

Intersectionality is an analytical framework for understanding how aspects of a person’s social and political identities combine to create different modes of discrimination and privilege. Intersectionality identifies multiple factors of advantage and disadvantage. Examples of these factors include gender, caste, sex, race, ethnicity, class, sexuality, religion, disability, weight, physical appearance, and height. These intersecting and overlapping social identities may be both empowering and oppressing.

Question 17

What are the main Parenting styles:

Answer 17

Authoritarian parenting:
These parents are strict and demand blind obedience from their children. The reason for rules is typically coupled with: “because I said so.”

Authoritative parenting:
These parents are strict and have clear standards of behavior. But they are also loving, warm, and nurturing.

Permissive parenting:
These parents offer a great deal of autonomy to their children and are warm, loving, and nurturing.

Neglectful parenting:
These parents take the hands-off approach and don’t get involved in their children’s lives.

Question 18

What is implicit personality theory?

Answer 18

implicit personality theory describes the specific patterns and biases an individual uses when forming impressions based on a limited amount of initial information about an unfamiliar person. While there are parts of the impression formation process that are context-dependent, individuals also tend to exhibit certain tendencies in forming impressions across a variety of situations. There is not one singular implicit personality theory utilized by all; rather, each individual approaches the task of impression formation in his or her own unique way. However, there are some components of implicit personality theories that are consistent across individuals, or within groups of similar individuals. These components are of particular interest to social psychologists because they have the potential to give insight into what impression one person will form of another.

Question 19

What is Self-enhancement?

Answer 19

Self-enhancement is a type of motivation that works to make people feel good about themselves and to maintain self-esteem. This motive becomes especially prominent in situations of threat, failure or blows to one’s self-esteem. Self-enhancement involves a preference for positive over negative self-views is a type of motivation that works to make people feel good about themselves and to maintain self-esteem. This motive becomes especially prominent in situations of threat, failure or blows to one’s self-esteem. Self-enhancement involves a preference for positive over negative self-views

Question 20

What is Attribution theory and the different types?

Answer 20

Attribution theory

Attribution theory is concerned with how ordinary people explain the causes of behaviour and events. For example, is someone angry because they are bad-tempered or because something bad happened?

Dispositional attribution

Dispositional attribution assigns the cause of behaviour to some internal characteristic of a person, rather than to outside forces.
When we explain the behaviour of others, we look for enduring internal attributions, such as personality traits. This is known as the fundamental attribution error.
For example, we attribute the behaviour of a person to their personality, motives, or beliefs.

Situational attribution

The process of assigning the cause of behaviour to some situation or event outside a person’s control rather than to some internal characteristic.
When we try to explain our own behaviour, we tend to make external attributions, such as situational or environment features.