Unit #2 Flashcards
What do anthropologists use to study social change?
~Invention
~Diffusion and Acculturation
~Tension and Adaptation
~Accumulation
How do Anthropologists study dealing with social change?
they describe culture as the shared symbols, values, beliefs and behaviours of most members of a society. They view cultures as a constant change. They will study whether change is rapid or slow, beneficial or detrimental. Also if the change comes internally or externally.
Explain the social change theory: invention
is an example of an internal source of change. It can be a new product or idea that affects the way large groups conduct their daily lives. Some inventions are intentional to address a need in society while others may be accidental/unintentional
Explain: Diffusion and Acculturation
An example of external factors of change. It refers to the spread of a cultural trait from one society to another, when different cultures come into contact with each other.
I.E. Through trade, wars, migration, etc.
Explain: Tension and Adaptaion
Based on the Structural Functionalist school of thought, changes in one part of the social system causes tension on the rest. Members of society will seek to eliminate tension by adaptation in order to restore equilibrium (e.g. introduction of social assistance programs during high unemployment during the depression)
Explain: Accumulation
Cultural materialism states that the physical materials, conditions, economic activity, and technology within an environment determine how the ideas and ideology of a culture develop. Growth of human knowledge and goods from generation to generation allows society to develop new ways of doing things. (i.e. introduction of the television)
According to Anthropologists, whether a culture is likely to change depends on four interrelated parts
a. The Physical Environment
b. The level of technology
c. Social organization
d. Systems of symbols
