Culture
the values, beliefs, behavior, and material objects that together form a people's way of life
High Culture
cultural pattern that distinguish a society's elite
Material Culture
the tangible things created by members of a society
Nonmaterial Culture
The intangible world of ideas created by members of the society
Sociobiology
A theoretical approach that explores the ways in which human biology affects how we create culture
Afrocentrism
Emphasizing and promoting African cultural patterns
Technology
Knowledge that people use to make a way of life in their surroundings
Subculture
Cultural patterns that set apart some segment of a society's population
Counterculture
Cultural patterns that strongly oppose those widely accepted within a society
Symbol
Anything that carries a particular meaning recognized by people who share a culture
Values
Culturally defined standards that people use to decide what is desirable, good, and beautiful and that serve as broad guidelines for social living
Norms
Rules and expectations by which a society guides the behavior of its members
Mores
Norms that are widely observed and have great moral significance
Folkways
Norms for routine or casual interaction
Cultural Lag
The fact that some cultural elements change more quickly then others, disrupting a cultural system
Multiculturalism
Perspective recognizing the cultural diversity of the US and promising equal standing for all cultural traditions
Eurocentrism
Dominance of European cultural patterns
Cultural Transmission
Process by which one generation passes culture to the next
Language
System of symbols that allows people to communicate with one another
Sapir - Whorf Thesis
People see and understand the world through the cultural lens of language
Cultural Universals
Traits that are part of every known culture
Beliefs
Specific thoughts or ideas that people hold to be true
Culture Shock
Disorientation due to the inability to make sense out of one's surroundings
Cultural Integration
Close relationships among various elements of a cultural system
Cultural Relativism
The practice of judging a culture by its own standards
Social Control
Attempts by society to regulate people's thoughts and behaviors
Ethnocentrism
Judging of other cultures based on customs and values of your own
Popular Culture
Cultural patterns that are widespread among a society's culture