The Concept of

Culture
The Concept
of Culture
Meaning and Nature of Culture
It was E.B. Taylor who conceptualized the definition of culture
in 1860s.
According to him, culture is a complex whole which consist of
knowledge, beliefs, ideas, habits, attitudes, skills, abilities,
values, norms, art, law, morals, customs, traditions, feelings
and other capabilities of man which are acquired, learned and
socially transmitted by man from one generation to another
through language and living together as members of the society
(Arcinas, 2016)
Other definitions of culture as mentioned in the book of David
and Macaraeg (2010) entitled“ Sociology: Exploring Society
and Culture”:

• Culture is a historically transmitted pattern of meanings embodied in

symbols, a system of inherited conceptions expressed in symbolic form by
means of which men communicate, perpetuate, and develop their knowledge
about and attitudes towards life. – Clifford Geertz
• Culture consists of learned systems of meaning, communicated by means of
natural language and other symbol systems, having representational,
directive, and affective functions, and capable of creating cultural entities and
particular senses of reality. – Roy D’Andrade
• Culture is an extrasomatic (nongenetic, nonbodily), temporal continuum of
things and events dependent upon symbols. Culture consists of tools,
implements, utensils, clothing, ornaments, customs, institutions, beliefs,
rituals, games, works of art, language, etc. – Leslie White
• Culture consists in the shared patterns of behavior and associated meanings
that people learn and participate in within the groups to whichthey belong.
– Whitten and Hunter
• A society’s culture consists of whatever it is one has to know or believe in
order to operate in a manner acceptable to its members. – WardGoodenough
• Culture is an instrumental reality, and apparatus for the satisfaction of the
biological and derived need”. It is the integral whole consisting of implements
in consumers’ goods, of constitutional characters for the various social
groupings, of human ideas and crafts, beliefs and custom. – Malinowski
• Culture in general as a descriptive concept means the accumulated treasury
of human creation: books, paintings, buildings, and the like; the knowledge of
ways of adjusting to our surroundings, both human and physical; language,
customs, and systems of etiquette, ethics, religion and morals that have been
built up through the ages. – Kluckhohn and Kelly
• Culture refers to that part of the total setting [of human existence] which
includes the material objects of human manufacture, techniques, social
orientations, points of view, and sanctioned ends that are the immediate
conditioning factors underlying behavior or in simple terms it is the “man made
part of the environmen. – Herskovits

• A culture is the total socially acquired life-way or life-style of a group of people.

It consists of the patterned, repetitive ways of thinking, feeling, and acting that
are characteristic of the members of a particular society or segment of a society.
– Harris

• The concept of culture as everything that people have, thinks, and does as
members of a society. This definition can be instructive because the three verbs
correspond to the three major components of culture. That is, everything that
people have refers to material possessions; everything that people think refers to
those things they carry around in their heads, such as ideas, values, and
attitudes; and everything that people do refers to behavior patterns. Thus all
cultures comprise (a) material objects, (b) ideas, values, and attitudes, and (c)
patterned ways of behaving. – Gary Ferraro
Characteristics of Culture
From the Perspective of Sociologists) From the Perspective of Anthropologists
1. Dynamic, flexible and adaptive- Culture 1. Learned
necessarily changes, and is changed by, a - Culture is learned, as each person
variety of interactions, with individuals, media, must learn how to “be” a member of that
and technology, just to name a few. culture
- Cultures interact and change. Most societies - Culture is acquired by being born into a
interact with other societies, and as a particular society in the process of
consequence their cultures interact that lead to enculturation. Through language, the
exchanges of material (ex: tools and furniture) cultural traits of society are passed on to
and non-material (ex: ideas and symbols) younger members in the process of
components of culture. growing up and through teaching.
- All cultures change, or else, they would have - Every human generation potentially
problems adjusting and adapting to changing can discover new things and invent
environments. better technologies. The new cultural
- Culture is adaptive and dynamic, once we skills and knowledge are added onto
recognize problems, culture can adapt again, in what was learned in previous
a more positive way, to find solutions. generations.
- We need our cultural skills to stay
alive.
Characteristics of Culture
From the Perspective of Sociologists) From the Perspective of Anthropologists

2. Shared and maybe challenged 2. Symbolic

- (Given the reality of social - Culture is symbolic, as it based on
differentiation), as we share culture the manipulation of symbols
with others, we are able to act in a - Culture renders meaning to what
appropriate ways as well as predict people do. Beliefs, religion, rituals,
how others will act. Despite the shared myths, dances, performances, music,
nature of culture, that doesn’t mean artworks, sense of taste, education,
that culture is homogenous (the innovations, identity, ethnicity, and so
same). on are meaningful human expressions
- It may be challenged by the of what people do and how they act
presence
of other cultures and other social
forces in society like modernization,
industrialization, and globalization.
Characteristics of Culture
From the Perspective of Sociologists) From the Perspective of Anthropologists

3. Learned through socialization or 3. Systemic and integrated

enculturation - Culture is systemic and integrated as the parts
of culture work together in an integrated whole.
- Culture is not biological, people do - The systems of meanings and many
not inherit it but learned as interact in other facets (sides) of culture such as
society. Much of learning culture is kindred, religion, economic activities,
unconscious. People learn, absorb inheritance, and political process, do
not function in isolation but an integrated whole
and acquire culture from families, that makes society work.
friends, institutions, and the media. - These varying systems of meanings,
The process of learning culture is relations. And processes are shared
enculturation. within a group of people rendering
culture bounded to those who seek a
sense of belonging to the same society.
Characteristics of Culture
From the Perspective of Sociologists) From the Perspective of Anthropologists

4. Patterned social interactions 4. Shared

- Culture as a normative system has - Culture is shared, as it offers
the capacity to define and control all people ideas about behavior
human behaviors. - Since culture is shared within
- Norms (for example) are cultural exclusive domains of social relations,
expectations in terms of how one will societies operate differently from each
think, feel, or behave as set by one’s other leading for cultural variations.
culture. It sets the patterns in terms - Societies do not always exist
of what is appropriate or independently from each other.
inappropriate in a given setting.
- Human interactions are guided by
some forms of standards and
expectations which in the end
regularize it
Characteristics of Culture
From the Perspective of Sociologists) From the Perspective of Anthropologists

4. Patterned social interactions 4. Shared

- Culture as a normative system has - Culture is shared, as it offers
the capacity to define and control all people ideas about behavior
human behaviors. - Since culture is shared within
- Norms (for example) are cultural exclusive domains of social relations,
expectations in terms of how one will societies operate differently from each
think, feel, or behave as set by one’s other leading for cultural variations.
culture. It sets the patterns in terms - Societies do not always exist
of what is appropriate or independently from each other.
inappropriate in a given setting.
- Human interactions are guided by
some forms of standards and
expectations which in the end
regularize it
Characteristics of Culture
From the Perspective of Sociologists) From the Perspective of Anthropologists
5. Transmitted through socialization 5. Encompassing
or enculturation - Culture covers every feature of
- As we share our culture with others, humanity. Around the world, people as
we are able to pass it on to the new members of their own societies establish
members of society or the younger connections with each other and form
generation in different ways. relationship guided by their respective
- In the process of socialization cultural practices and values.
/enculturation, we were able to teach - Edward Tylor defines culture as a
them about many things in life and complex whole which encompasses
equip them with the culturally beliefs, practices, traits, values,
acceptable ways of surviving, attitudes, laws, norms, artifacts,
competing, and making meaningful symbols, knowledge, and everything that
interaction with others in society. a person learns and shares as a member
of society (David and Macaraeg, 2010).
Characteristics of Culture
From the Perspective of Sociologists) From the Perspective of Anthropologists
6. Requires language and other forms
of communication
- In the process of learning and
transmitting culture, symbols and
language are needed to communicate
with others in society (Arcinas, 2016).
Importance/Functions of Culture
• Sociologists recognize and regard culture as one of the most important
concepts within sociology because it plays a vital role in our social lives.
• It is essential for shaping social relationships, maintaining and challenging
social order,
• determining how we make sense of the world and our place in it, and in
shaping
our everyday actions and experiences in society.
• Moreover, culture is important to sociologists because it plays a significant and
important role in the production of social order.
• The social order refers to the stability of society based on the collective
agreement to rules and norms that allow us to cooperate, function as a
society, andlive together (ideally) in peace and harmony (Cole, 2019).
In the book of (David and Macaraeg, 2010), the following
functions of culture were given emphasis:
• (1) it serves as the “trademark” of the • (7) it establishes social personality;
people in the society;
• (8) it provides systematic behavioral
• (2)it gives meaning and direction to pattern;
one’s existence; • (9) it provides social structure category;
• (3) it promotes meaning to individual’s • (10) it maintains the biologic functioning
existence; of the group;
• (4) it predicts social behavior; • (11) it offers ready-made solutions to
man’s material and immaterial
• (5) it unifies diverse behavior; problems; and
• (6) it provides social solidarity; • (12) it develops man’s attitude and
values and gives him a conscience.
Elements of Culture
1. Symbols refers to anything that is used to stand for something
else. It is anything that gives meaning to the culture. People
who share a culture often attach a specific meaning to an
object, gesture, sound, or image.
2. Language is known as the storehouse of culture ( Arcinas,
2016). It system of words and symbols used to communicate
with other people. We have a lot of dialects in the Philippines
that provide a means of understanding.
3. Technology refers to the application of knowledge and
equipment to ease the task of living and maintaining the
environment; it includes artifacts, methods and devices created
and used by people (Arcinas, 2016).
4.Values are culturally defined standards for what is good or
desirable. Values determine how individuals will probably
respond in any given circumstances. Members of the culture
use the shared system of values to decide what is good and
what is bad. This also refers to the abstract concept of what is
important and worthwhile (David and Macaraeg, 2010).
5.Beliefs refers to the faith of an individual ( David and
Macaraeg, 2010).
6.Norms are specific rules/standards to guide for appropriate
behavior(Arcinas, 2016).
Types:
• a. Proscriptive norm defines and tells us things not to do
• b. Prescriptive norm defines and tells us things to do

Forms:
a) Folkways are also known as customs (customary/repetitive ways
of doing things); they are forms of norms for everyday behavior
that people follow for the sake of tradition or convenience.
b) Mores are strict norms that control moral and ethical behavior;
they are based on definitions of right and wrong (Arcinas, 2016).
c) Laws are controlled ethics and they are morally agreed, written
down and enforced by an official law enforcement agency(Arcinas,
2016).
Two Components of Culture
1. Material culture consists of tangible things (Banaag, 2012).

2. Non-material culture consists of intangible things (Banaag, 2012)

Modes of Acquiring Culture

1. Imitation - Children and adults alike have the tendency to imitate the
values, attitudes, language and all other things in their social environment.
2. Indoctrination or Suggestion - This may take the form of formal training or
informal teaching.
3. Conditioning - The values, beliefs, and attitudes of other people are acquired
through conditioning. This conditioning can be reinforced through reward
and punishment.
Adaption of Culture
1. Parallelism means that the same culture may take place in
two or more different places.
2. Diffusion refers to those behavioral patterns that pass back
and forth from one culture to another. This is the transfer
or spread of culture traits from one another brought about
by change agents such as people or media
3. Convergence takes place when two or more cultures are
fused or merged into one culture making it different from
the original culture.
4. Fission takes place when people break away from their
original culture and start developing a different culture of
their own.
5. Acculturation refers to the process wherein individuals
incorporate the behavioral patterns of other cultures into their
own either voluntarily or by force. Voluntary acculturation
occurs through imitation, borrowing, or personal contact with
other people.
6. Assimilation occurs when the culture of a larger society is
adopted by a smaller society, that smaller society assumes
some of the culture of the larger society or cost society.
7. Accommodation occurs when the larger society and smaller
society are ableto respect and tolerate each other’s culture even
if there is already a prolonged contact of each other’s culture.
Causes of Cultural Change
1. Discovery is the process of finding a new place or an object,
artefact or anything that previously existed.
2. Invention implies a creative mental process of devising,
creating and producing something new, novel or original;
and also the utilization and combination of previously known
elements to produce that an original or novel product.
3. Diffusion is the spread of cultural traits or social practices
from a society or group to another belonging to the same
society or to another through direct contact with each other
and exposure to new forms.
 a) Acculturation – cultural borrowing and cultural imitation
b) Assimilation – the blending or fusion of two distinct cultures
through long periods of interaction
c) Amalgamation – the biological or hereditary fusion of members of
different societies
d) Enculturation – the deliberate infusion of a new culture to another

4. Colonization refers to the political, social, and political policy of establishing a

colony which would be subject to the rule or governance of the colonizing state.
5. Rebellon and revolutionary movements aim to change the whole social
order and replace the leadership. The challenge the existing folkways and
mores, and propose a new scheme of norms, values and organization
Ethnocentrism,
Xenocentrism and
Cultural Relativism
as Orientations in
Viewing Other
Cultures
• Etnocentrism is a perception that arises from the fact that
cultures differ and each culture defines reality differently.
This happens when judging another culture solely by the
values and standards of one’s own culture (Baleña,
et.al,2016)
• Xenocentrism is the opposite of ethnocentrism, the belief
that one’s culture is inferior compared to others. People are
highly influenced by the culture or many culture outside the
realm of their society. This could be one of the effects of
globalization.
Cultural relativism is an attempt to judge behavior according to its
cultural context (Baleña, et.al,2016).
• This concept emphasizes the perspective that no culture is superior
to any other culture (Arcinas, 2016) because
• (a) different societies have different moral code;
• (b)the moral code of a society determines what is right or wrong
within the society;
• (c) there are no moral truths that hold for all people at all times;
• (d) the moral code of our own society has no special status, it is
but one among many; and
• (e) it is arrogant for us to judge other cultures, so we have to be
tolerant to them.
Other Important Terms Related to Culture
1. Cultural diversity refers the differentiation of culture all over the world which
means there is no right or wrong culture but there is appropriate culture for
the need of a specific group of people.
2. Sub-culture refers to a smaller group within a larger culture.
3. Counterculture refers cultural patterns that strongly oppose those widely
accepted within a society (example in the 1960”s counter culture among
teenagers reflect long hair, blue jeans, peace sign, rock and roll music and drug
abuse).
4. Culture lag is experienced when some parts of the society do not change as fast
as with other parts and they are left behind
5. Culture shock is the inability to read meaning in one’s surroundings, feeling of
lost and isolation, unsure to act as a consequence of being outside the symbolic
web of culture that binds others.
6. Ideal culture refers to the social patterns mandated by
cultural values and norms.
7. Real culture refers to the actual patterns that only
approximate cultural expectations.
8. High culture refers to the cultural patterns that distinguish
a society’s elite
9. Popular culture refers to the cultural patterns that are
widespread among a society’s population.
10.Culture change is the manner by which culture evolves.