Summary of chapter Four Flashcards
Define ‘cultural beliefs’ and explain how they reflect a cultures symbolic inheritance
Cultural beliefs are the commonly held norms and moral standards of a culture, the
standards of right and wrong that set expectations for behavior. These beliefs are
usually rooted in the culture’s symbolic inheritance, which is a set of learned
assumptions about persons, society, and natural and supernatural forces.
Describe the process of socialization and the three main outcomes
Socialization is the process by which people acquire the behaviors and beliefs of the
culture they live in. Three outcomes central to this process are self-regulation, role
preparation, and the cultivation of sources of meaning.
Define individualism and collectivism and explain how they foster independent and interdependent selves
Cultural beliefs usually tend toward either individualism or collectivism, with
Individualistic cultures avina priority to independence
collectivist cultures placing a higher value on obedience and conformity. Collectivistic
cultures promote the development of an interdependent self, such that people place a
strong value on cooperation, mutual support, harmonious social relations, and
contributions to the group. In contrast, individualistic cultures promote the development
of an independent self, such that people place a strong value on independence,
individual freedoms, and individual achievements
Distinguish broad and narrow socialization and specify how they are related to individualism and collectivism
Broad socialization and narrow socialization are the terms for the process by which
cultural members come to adopt the values and beliefs of an individualistic or a
collectivistic culture. Cultures characterized by broad socialization favor individualism.
They encourage individual uniqueness, independence, and self-expression. Cultures
characterized by narrow socialization favor collectivism. They hold obedience and
conformity to be the highest values and discourage deviation from cultural expectations.
Identify the eight sources of socialization and describe the broad and narrow forms each one takes
Sources of socialization include family, peers and friends, school, community, media,
the workplace, the legal system, and cultural beliefs. Each has a characteristic “broad”
or “narrow” form, with the broad forms emphasizing choice and allowing for diversity,
based on values of independence and self-expression, and the narrow forms specifying
a limited range of options controlled by authorities, based on values of obedience and
conformity.
Explain how the teaching of the law to adolescent aborigines represents socialization for cultural beliefs
The Law is a symbolic inheritance, in that it contain ideas about social relations, divine
forces, and the proper behavior of individuals. It promotes self-regulation of sexual
desire, and specifies the role responsibilities boys will have as adult men. In addition, it
provides sources of meaning by explaining the origin of the world and gives boys a
clear vision of their place within it.
Summarize the change in value as shown in the to Middletown studies
In the 50 years from 1928 to 1978, the importance of childrearing values such as
“loyalty to church” and “strict obedience” fell, whereas the importance of independence
and tolerance rose.
Define custom complex and give your own example of how it operates in adolescence
A custom complex consists of a distinctive cultural practice and the cultural beliefs that
are the basis for that practice. Many aspects of development and behavior in
adolescence and emerging adulthood can be understood as custom complexes.
Describe the main variations in cultural beliefs among American immigrant groups
Many studies have shown that the cultural beliefs of American minority cultures tend to
be less individualistic and more collectivistic than the cultural beliefs of the American
majority culture. African American families especially emphasize obedience and respect
for elders, whereas Latinos and Asian Americans emphasize family obligations.
Specify the features of American adolescence religious beliefs and practices, including moralistic therapeutic Deism.
American adolescents are more religious than adolescents in other developed
countries, in their beliefs and practices, with most stating a belief in God and at least
occasional involvement in religious practices. Most embrace what researchers call
“Moralistic Therapeutic Deism,” which includes the belief that God wants us to be good
persons and to feel good about ourselves, as well as a general “deistic” belief in God
rather than embracing a strict doctrine of any particular denomination
Summarize the similarities and differences between American adolescence and emerging adults in their religious beliefs and practises.
Ideas about religious faith tend to become more abstract and less concrete in
adolescence, compared with preadolescence. In American studies, religiosity generally
declines from adolescence through emerging adulthood. Both religious participation and
religious beliefs decline throughout the teens and are lower in the late teens and early
twenties than at any other period of the life span.
Describe kohlberg’s levels and stages of moral development and the evidence supporting the theory.
Kohlberg’s theory of moral development proposed that moral development occurs in a
universal sequence regardless of culture. Kohlberg developed a system for classifying
their explanations into three levels of moral development (preconventional,
conventional, and postconventional), with each level containing two stages. Research
generally shows that people progress through Stages 1 through 4 from adolescence
through young adulthood, but few people have been found to reach the highest stages.
Identify the main points of cultural critique of Kohlberg’s theory of moral development.
Although Kohlberg did not deny that culture has some influence on moral development,
in his view the influence of culture is limited to how well cultures provide opportunities
for individuals to reach the highest level of moral development. However, these
assumptions have been called into question by scholars taking a cultural approach to
moral development. The most extensive and penetrating critique has been presented
by cultural psychologist Richard Shweder, who has disputed Kohlberg’s theory in
research comparing Indian and American adolescents.
Describe the world views theory of moral development, including the three ethics and template model
According to Lene Jensen, the ultimate basis of morality is a person’s worldview–a set
of cultural beliefs that explain what it means to be human,
be conducted, and how human problems should be addressed. Worldviews provide the
basis for moral reasoning. The outcome of moral reasoning is moral evaluations, which
in turn prescribe moral behaviors. Moral behaviors reinforce worldviews. The three
ethics are Autonomy, Community, and Divinity. In the template model, there is a
universal template for the development of the three ethics, but it is influenced by
cultural context.
Describe Adelson’s View of how cognitive changes from early to late adolescence result in changes in political beliefs
Adelson described a change in “cognitive mode” from early to late adolescence, which
included more use of abstract ideas and a greater tendency to see laws and political
systems as human creations rather than as absolute and unchangeable. Late
adolescents were less authoritarian than early adolescents and more likely to be able to
articulate a political ideology as the basis of their views.
