Understanding Culture: Key Characteristics and Elements

Understanding Culture: Key Characteristics

Culture encompasses the learned and shared patterns of behavior and thinking within a social group.

Key Characteristics of Culture

1. Culture is learned behavior, unlike animal behavior, which is often instinctive.
2. Culture is an adaptation device, enabling humans to develop diverse responses to environmental challenges.
3. Culture is transmitted from generation to generation.
4. Culture changes due to endogenous and exogenous factors.
5. Culture provides a framework for meaning and interpretation of reality; the same behavior can have different meanings in different societies.
6. Individuals within a society share the same culture differentially, influenced by age, gender, economic status, ethnicity, race, and religion.

Elements of Culture

The core elements of culture include:

• Symbols
• Language
• Values and Beliefs
• Norms
• Material Objects

Influence of Culture

Culture significantly influences:

• The division of labor
• The nature of social relations (egalitarian or asymmetric)
• The presence of specialized institutions
• Urban or rural settlement patterns
• Gender relations (equality or subordination)

Manifestations of Culture

Culture is expressed through:

• Living in the environment
• Reproduction
• Organization of exchange of goods and labor
• Living within households and wider communities
• Creative, expressive, playful, aesthetic, moral, and intellectual human life

Types of Culture

• Elitist Culture vs. Popular Culture: Elitist culture is associated with refined tastes, while popular culture is more widespread.
• Subcultures: The distinct culture of a minority, majority, caste, or other group within a broader socio-cultural system.
• Hegemonic Culture: The culture of the ruling class.
• Subaltern Culture: The culture developed by subordinate social classes.

Cultural Change

Culture evolves over time, retaining key components while undergoing continuous changes at varying rates across societies.

Cultural Universality and National Culture

While there isn't a single universal culture due to the diverse development of cultures influenced by various contacts, there is also rarely a purely national culture because modern societies are often multiethnic and multicultural.