culture
the set of values, beliefs, rules and institutions held by a specific group of people.
ethnocentricity
the belief that one's own ethnic group or culturwe is superior to that of others.
cultural literacy
detailed knowledge about a culture that enables a person to function effectiviely within it.
subculture
a group of people who share a unique way of life within a larger, dominant culture.
aesthetics
what a culture considers "good taste" in the arts (including music, painting, dance, drama, and architecture), the imagery evoked by certain expressions, and symbolism of certain colors.
values
ideas, beliefs, and customs to which people are emotionally attached.
attitudes
positive or negative evaluations, feelings, and tendencies that individuals harbor toward objects or concepts.
cultural trait
anything that represents a culture's way of life, including gestures, material objects, traditions, and concepts.
cultural diffusion
the process whereby cultural traits spread from one culture to another.
cultural imperialism
the replacement of one's culture's traditions, folk heroes, and artifacts with substitutes from another.
manners
appropriate ways of behaving, speaking, and dressing in a culture.
customs
when habits or ways of behaving in specific circumstances are passed down through generations.
folk custom
behavior, often dating back several generations, that is practiced by a homogeneous group of people.
popular custom
behavior shared by a heterogeneous group or by several groups.
social structure
a culture's fundamental organization, including its group and institutions, its system and social positions and their relationships, and the process by which its resources are distributed.
social stratification
the process of ranking people into social layers or classes.
social mobility
the ease with which individuals can move up or down a culture's "social latter.
caste system
a system of social stratification in which people are born into a social ranking, or caste, with no opportunity for social mobility.
class system
a system of social stratification in which personal ability and actions determine social status and mobility.
communication
system to convey thoughts, feelings, knowledge, and information though speech, writing, and actions.
lingua franca
a third or "link" language understood by two parties who speak different native languages.
body language
communicates though unspoken cues, including hand gestures, facial expressions, physical greetings, eye contact, and the manipulation of personal space.
brain drain
the departure of highly educated people from one profession, geographic region, or nation to another.
topography
all the physical features that characterize the surface of a geographic region.
material culture
all the technology used in a culture to manufacture goods and provide services.
Kluckhohn-Strodtbeck framework
compares cultures along six dimensions. (page 70)
Hofstede framework
compares cultures along five dimensions. (page 71)