The Concept of Culture
Culture is a large and diverse set of mostly intangible aspects of social life. It includes values, beliefs and systems of communication that define people as members of a group or society. It also includes the material objects that people use in their daily lives, such as clothing, food, music and art. While culture is distinct from both social structure and economic aspects of society, it is connected to them in that it continuously informs them and is informed by them.
The term “culture” is used in a number of fields and disciplines, including sociology, anthropology, history, art, philosophy and linguistics. Sociologists use the concept of culture to describe the ways in which social relations are formed and maintained. The sociology of culture focuses on the cultural aspects of human society, while the sociology of language focuses on the ways in which people communicate within their respective cultures.
During the 1920s, social historians began to use the concept of culture to examine historical societies and their interactions with each other. A similar trend began to take hold in anthropology, with anthropologists focusing on the notion of “community” as an important aspect of culture. These changes in the study of history and anthropology were influenced by a range of developments, such as the second wave of feminism, the rise of racial studies, and the ‘linguistic turn’ of the 1980s that saw historians analyzing the way in which ideas and concepts are created through speech, writing and other symbolic forms.
A broad understanding of the meaning of culture suggests that there is much that is common across different groups of humans. However, it is equally true that each individual is capable of forming their own identity and expressing this in different ways. This flexibility is what makes the concept of culture so powerful and what allows for its continuing evolution.
Many of the changes in how we understand culture are driven by political, social and economic developments that occur in societies. For example, the growing need for companies to be global in their operations creates a greater need for corporate cultural awareness.
A key challenge in the understanding of culture is how to separate generalizations from stereotypes. Generally speaking, cultural generalizations are based on systematic cross-cultural research and are not intended to be labeling statements for specific individuals. Stereotypes, on the other hand, are based on a single experience or interaction and are narrow and limiting in their scope of understanding. Both types of understanding are necessary for effective teaching and learning, but it is important to understand the distinction between them. This is especially true in the classroom, where students are often exposed to both cultural generalizations and stereotypes. In a classroom setting, one effective way to encourage this understanding is to have each student select a cultural artifact and prepare to present it to the class. This exercise helps students to recognize that there are many different perspectives on the world and the importance of moving beyond stereotypes.
Culture is a large and diverse set of mostly intangible aspects of social life. It includes values, beliefs and systems of communication that define people as members of a group or society. It also includes the material objects that people use in their daily lives, such as clothing, food, music and art. While culture is distinct from both social structure and economic aspects of society, it is connected to them in that it continuously informs them and is informed by them. The term “culture” is used in a number of fields and disciplines, including sociology, anthropology, history, art, philosophy and linguistics. Sociologists use the concept of culture to describe the ways in which social relations are formed and maintained. The sociology of culture focuses on the cultural aspects of human society, while the sociology of language focuses on the ways in which people communicate within their respective cultures. During the 1920s, social historians began to use the concept of culture to examine historical societies and their interactions with each other. A similar trend began to take hold in anthropology, with anthropologists focusing on the notion of “community” as an important aspect of culture. These changes in the study of history and anthropology were influenced by a range of developments, such as the second wave of feminism, the rise of racial studies, and the ‘linguistic turn’ of the 1980s that saw historians analyzing the way in which ideas and concepts are created through speech, writing and other symbolic forms. A broad understanding of the meaning of culture suggests that there is much that is common across different groups of humans. However, it is equally true that each individual is capable of forming their own identity and expressing this in different ways. This flexibility is what makes the concept of culture so powerful and what allows for its continuing evolution. Many of the changes in how we understand culture are driven by political, social and economic developments that occur in societies. For example, the growing need for companies to be global in their operations creates a greater need for corporate cultural awareness. A key challenge in the understanding of culture is how to separate generalizations from stereotypes. Generally speaking, cultural generalizations are based on systematic cross-cultural research and are not intended to be labeling statements for specific individuals. Stereotypes, on the other hand, are based on a single experience or interaction and are narrow and limiting in their scope of understanding. Both types of understanding are necessary for effective teaching and learning, but it is important to understand the distinction between them. This is especially true in the classroom, where students are often exposed to both cultural generalizations and stereotypes. In a classroom setting, one effective way to encourage this understanding is to have each student select a cultural artifact and prepare to present it to the class. This exercise helps students to recognize that there are many different perspectives on the world and the importance of moving beyond stereotypes.