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Intro to Sociology Ch 4 Notes
Introduction to Sociology (SOC 110)
Des Moines Area Community College
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Chapter 4: Recognizing Culture
4 Defining Culture
Culture refers to the characteristics of a group or society that make it distinct from other groups and societies. Nonmaterial culture includes concepts such as norms, values and beliefs, symbols, and language. Material culture consists of artifacts ranging from tools to products designed for leisure like flat- screen TVs and Xboxes. These things reflect the values and beliefs of the people who live in a culture.
4 Key Terms
nonmaterial culture: Concepts such as norms, values, beliefs, symbols, and language material culture: Consists of artifacts ranging from tools to products designed for leisure. Reflects the values and beliefs of the people who live in a culture
4 Identifying Elements of Culture
Patterns of behavior, guided by our culture, provide a framework for making decisions in our lives. The key elements of a culture—norms, values and beliefs, symbols, and language—help shape our everyday lives. Norms (expectations about the appropriate thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of people in a variety of situations) guide our interactions. Our beliefs and values shape our understanding of the world and how we act in it. We communicate through the use of symbols, which can convey to large numbers of people. The language we use is a series of symbols. The multicultural ideal respects differing cultures in a society and honors their unique contributions to the larger culture.
4 Key Terms
norms: Expectations about the appropriate thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of people in a variety of situations generalized other: Our perceptions of the attitudes of a whole community agency: The ability to act and think independently of social constraints mores: Widely held beliefs about what is considered moral and just behavior in society folkways: Rules of behavior for common and routine interactions values: What a society holds to be desirable, good, and important beliefs: What we deem to be true symbol: Anything that has the same meaning for two or more people language: A series of symbols used to communicate meaning among people Sapir-Whorf hypothesis: Also known as linguistic relativism, notes that language influences our understanding of reality above and beyond the meaning of its symbols
4 Typology of Societies
Gerhard Lenski (see Nolan and Lenski 2010) argued that technology is the driving force in the development of society and leads to different types of societies and cultures. Technological developments allow groups of people to increase in size, and this population growth leads to cultural complexity that does not exist among groups with smaller populations. For example, with the invention of more advanced tools to harvest crops and raise more animals, agrarian societies were able to support larger numbers of people and to develop high culture (the culture of the elites).
cultural universals: Cultural practices that exist in most or all societies, such as social structures, tool making, art, song, dance, religious beliefs, rituals, families, a division of labor, and politics
4 The Power of Culture
Culture is a tool kit for us to use in our day-to-day lives. Having the right cultural tools can help us interact with others effectively and gain what we seek. Cultural capital is knowledge related to education, style, appearance, and dress that promotes social mobility (Bourdieu and Passeron 1990). Cultural capital can help us gain access to powerful arenas of society. We can use these connections and our cultural knowledge for both our own personal gain and in efforts to help shape society.
4 Key Terms
cultural capital: A type of capital related to education, style, appearance, and dress that promotes social mobility social intelligence: Our ability to understand social relationships and get along with others
Intro to Sociology Ch 4 Notes
Course: Introduction to Sociology (SOC 110)
University: Des Moines Area Community College
