Unit 1- Acquiring culture- key terms Flashcards
Key terms
culture
the way of life, knowledge, beliefs and ideas shared by a group of people. It includes norms and values, customs and rituals, dress, language, food, music and heritage
material culture
physical things like clothing, food and houses
non-material culture
ideas, beliefs, values, principles, language, religion all provide guidelines as to how to behave
collectivist culture
such cultures emphasis the group rather than the individual. The introduction of the NHS providing healthcare for all reflected a collectivist approach
Individualistic cultures
emphasizing individual freedom and personal gain, sometimes at the expense of others. European and US culture has been increasingly individualistic.
Cultural diversity
In Britain there are many cultures operating together. e.g welsh and english cultures and within wales the different forms of the welsh language in the north and south.
Mainstream culture
The ideas and ways of life of the majority of people in that culture.
sub-cultures
A group within a larger culture which often has different norms and values to the mainstream. e.g youth cultures like goths, ethnic groups like Afro-Caribbean or Chinese
Values
a set of ideas or principles shared by a culture concerning what is good, right and fair e.g respect for human life, freedom of speech, manners
norms
The normal and expected way to behave in a culture in line with the values eg. queuing (to show fairness), knocking (to respect privacy). The strongest norms are known as taboo,such as incest, while trivial norms, like eating turkey a Christmas, are
beliefs
an idea or concept which an individual or group accepted as true, regardless of the evidence
Mores
a set of norms based on morals which define the most fundamental ideas of right and wrong e.g do not kill, do not practice cannibalism
consensus
a widely shared idea . value consensus exists if most people share the same core values and follow them willingly. functionalists believe value consensus is essential to bind society together
status
the standing or respect a person or a group has in society. status can be ascribed e.g son/daughter or achieved e.g footballer/doctor
social roles
the part people play as members of a social group. with each social role an person adapts in their behavior to fit the expectations both they and others have of that role. roles include brother, daughter, student, friend, nurse. people learn what makes up the various roles by copying ‘role models’ and role play. roles can be in conflict e.g mother/employee
social construct
a generally agreed view about something , which has been created by society rather than inherited
nature/nurture debate
the relative importance of genetic inheritance compared with environment and upbringing in human development. identical twin studies such as Trinidad twins suggests mannerism and tastes are nature but all important values, mores and beliefs come form nurture
feral children
children who are socialized. e.g Genie and the wolf children. Many case studies show that human culture must be learned from others, it is constructed not inherent.
social change
societies do not remain the same. change could be alteration of the economics, norms or values of a society. social changes include the development of feminism. It indicates that societies create culture , and can change it too.
socialization
the process of learning how to behave in a way that is appropriate for your culture. agents of socialization include education, family, religion, media, peer groups
re-socilisation
becoming socialized into a new situation such as starting university or a new workplace
cultural transmission
the way culture is passed from one generation to the next through socialization
social/informal control
the way in which peoples behavior is affected by the social rules of the cultures in which they live e.g children not throwing food as they have learnt the norms of table manners
formal control
deliberate and structured control by eg government through the policies and legalization or through the education system.
agencies of socilisation
people or social institutions which form part of the process of passing on to people the norms and values of their society. It is from agencies of socialization that we learn to how to act in the way that others expect from us eg. family,education, religion peer groups, workplace
identity
a sense of who you are which arises at least in part, from our social structures eg gender, ethnicity and class
habitus
bourdieu:the social institutions in which we feel most comfortable, which is with people of a similar social class and ethnic group
personal identity
the ‘inner’ self
social identity
identity portrayed to society at large, not necessarily the same as self-identity. suggests er learn who we are from those around us
social structure
these are the organisations that create a society. they are the systems around which society is organised, for example, education and family are as social structures, as are social class and ethnic groups
social class
the position of a group in society. in the UK social class is a significant factor determining inclusion or exclusion or exclusion from areas of life such as education, health and crime
ethnicity
a sense of ancestry, history, tradition, belief and language
nationality
a legal status associated with a geographical area. civic nationalism suggests a sense of pride in your country, whereas extreme nationalism is an intolerance of others
social equality
having unequal access to rewards and power in society eg there is inequality between the social classes and ethnic groups.
conflict
competition/exploitation between social groups. for example, feminists believe men exploit women while Marxist believe that the rich exploit the poor
stereotype
people develop a generalized and simplistic image of members of other social groups and them behave as though these images were true eg gender and ethnic stereotypes.
social differnetiation
when social groups eg males/females are treated differently on the basis of their social identity
social stratifiation
an extreme form of social differentiation whereby some social groups are valued more than others eg middle/upper class valued more than lower/underclass
social power
the ability of some individuals or social groups to have influence over others in terms of how they think and act
social policy
The laws , guidelines and regulations coming from government to control and improve society. policies depend on the beliefs of the particular government . for example, conservative governments tend to reduce tax for the rich while labour might increase it.
subcultures
-develop through changes in order to make things more compatible
- some features with another culture
-distinct from dominant culture
