Principles of Sociology
Chapter 3: Culture
Socio-Culture
Society is a group of
people who shape their
lives in aggregated and
patterned ways that
distinguish their group
from others
Society is group of
people (structured
system of social
relationships)
bounded by space
and time (population)
who share a culture 2
What is Culture?
CULTURE = the system
of symbols people in a
society use to create,
store, and organize their
affairs
Beliefs, Values,
Norms, Language,
Patterns of action,
and Physical Objects
Transmitted across
generations
3
What is Culture?
SYMBOLS = object or
action that by social
convention stands for,
represents, something
else.
Arbitrary but
consensual
Language is made up of
significant symbols
A cultural universal
Sapir-Whorf
hypothesis- Does
thought come before
language or language
comes before
thought?
4
Components of Culture
What gets learned?
Beliefs = ideas that people in a society
share about what exists, what is true
Values = ideas that people in a society
share about what is good or bad, right or
wrong, desirable or undesirable,
appropriate or inappropriate
Norms = standards/rules and
expectations that people in a society
share about how they are supposed to
act, think, or feel in particular situations
which are enforced by positive and
negative sanctions.
5
Components of Culture
Role = set of normative
requirements/expectations that apply to
the activities of a specific category of
people in a particular situation.
Social Role = the activities or expectations
of individuals in a specific social status
Social Status = a recognized position or
location within a larger system of social
positions
Master Status = a status which permeates
all other statuses in a status set.
Examples: Age, Gender, Ethnicity, SES.
6
Components of Culture
Social Groups = relatively small systems
of status positions
Primary - small, frequent interaction,
intimate relationships
Secondary - larger, impersonal
interaction, segmented relationships
Social Institutions = general patterns of
social organization or social systems that
develop around or focus on accomplishing
goals related to basic human and
or/social needs.
Basic social institutions involve basic
needs - Family, Education, Religion,
Economics, Polity/Government,
Health/Medicine, Mass Media.
7
Culture Internalized
INTERNALIZATION = the process by which
we incorporate within our personality/self
the norms that are prevalent within our
society.
CONSCIENCE = the internal operation of
ethical or moral principles that control the
action, thoughts, and/or feelings of an
individual.
8
Culture
Culture provides the content, context and
conduct of socialization:
What is transmitted
Who does the transmitting
How it is transmitted
The Goals of Socialization
9
Cultural Variability
Dominant culture = the
culture of the group
whose values, norms,
traditions, and
perspectives are imposed
on society as a whole.
Subculture = a subgroup
in society whose
perspectives and
lifestyles differ from the
dominant culture.
10
Cultural Variability
Counterculture= a
subgroup in society
whose beliefs, norms,
and values are often
incompatible with
mainstream culture.
Culture Wars = clashes in
mainstream society over
values/norms
Ideal vs Real
11
Cultural Change
Cultural Variability = cultural
differences resulting from Social
Change
Alterations occur over time
Stable and enduring patterns make up
society
Generation gap
12
Cultural Diffusion
Isomorphism = when distinct cultures
become increasing similar
Cultural imperialism = the imposition of one
culture’s beliefs and practices on another
culture through media and consumer
products rather than military force
13
Cultural Diffusion
14