SociologyLesson 1 of 4 in the course Culture

Culture, Cultural Universals, and Cross-Cultural Encounters

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Culture shapes everyday life, from how people form families to how they travel and communicate. This lesson introduces culture as a shared way of life that people learn through living with others.

Humans are social creatures who have formed groups for survival for millions of years. Living together allows people to develop common habits and behaviors, including ways of raising children and obtaining food. These shared, learned patterns are part of culture.

All flashcards

Material culture
The tangible objects people make, use, and value.
Cultural universal
A pattern or trait found across societies, though its form may vary.
Cultural imperialism
The deliberate imposition of one culture's values or practices on another.
Cultural relativism
Understanding a culture by examining practices within that culture's own context and standards.
Xenocentrism
The belief that another culture is superior to one's own.

Quiz questions

  1. Which pairing correctly distinguishes material culture from nonmaterial culture?Answer: Material culture includes tangible objects; nonmaterial culture includes ideas, values, and norms.
  2. What makes a practice a cultural universal?Answer: It is found across societies, although its specific forms can differ.
  3. What does ethnocentrism involve?Answer: Evaluating another culture by the standards of one's own culture.
  4. What distinguishes cultural imperialism from cultural exchange?Answer: It involves deliberately imposing one culture's practices or values on another.
  5. Which description best defines xenophobia?Answer: Irrational fear or hatred of different cultures.

Based on Introduction to Sociology 3e by Tonja R. Conerly, Kathleen Holmes, Asha Lal Tamang (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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