How does the understanding of culture in social science differ from the everyday use of the word ‘culture’?
In everyday use or we can say as per the common sense knowledge the word culture means the artistic performance like dance, drama, music, etc.
However in social science culture has been understood in a scientific and prescribed way which is much more than the artistic performances.
In terms of sociology culture is the common understanding which is learnt and developed through social interactions and is passed from one generation to another generation.
It is a base, which gives shape to our life and society as a whole.
Edward Taylor, the first anthropologist defined culture as the abstract and intangible dimensions which were further refined by Bronislaw Malinowski according to whom culture included to use of materials also.
How can we demonstrate that the different dimensions of culture comprise a whole?
There are three dimensions of culture – cognitive, normative, and material
1. Cognitive dimension - The term cognition may be defined as the process of acquiring knowledge through thought experience and senses. The cognitive learning is the process in which we learn that how to understand the communication we receive whether it is audible or visible. Every culture has given different meaning to different actions.
2. Normative dimensions - It consists of customs conventions in law which are the values or rules that guide the social behaviour in a particular community. These are the implicit and explicit rules of conduct with influences the members to behave accordingly or direct the behaviour and action of individuals.
3. Material dimension - The material aspect includes tools, technologies, machines, buildings, modes of transportation as well as the instruments of production and communication. It includes the activities which can be made possible by use of various materials
Compare two cultures with which you are familiar. Is it difficult not to be ethnocentric?
Two cultures that are very prominent in society are urban culture and rural culture.
The urban culture represents the life of people staying in city whereas rural culture represents the life of people living in villages.
In cities there are lot of industries and the people work with machines and are into formal employment as well as they use various other machines in daily course of life whereas in villages people are mainly engaged in agriculture and into informal employment.
The life in villages is very simple and traditional as compared to the life in cities.
In cities people prefer to live individually and in villages people prefer to live in groups.
Ethnocentrism means the application of one’s own cultural values in evaluating the behaviour and beliefs of people from other culture. It exists when a culture comes in contact with other culture.
Under ethnocentrism we believe our culture to be superior to all other existing cultures. Like people residing in villages feel that they lead a better life and have a better culture than urban culture and similarly the people living in cities believe that their culture is better than those who are residing in villages
Therefore it is difficult not to be ethnocentric.
Discuss two different approaches to studying cultural change.
There are two different approaches to study cultural change - evolutionary and revolutionary.
Evolutionary change is slow whereas Revolutionary change is fast.
When a culture is transformed rapidly and its values and meaning system undergo major and extreme changes then we say that there is a Revolutionary change. It can be initiated through political intervention, technological innovation, or ecological transformation.
In evolutionary change, people transform gradually and the changes come slowly through time consuming process like education has brought many cultural changes in social beliefs and people of society. It is based upon cognitive learning system.
Is cosmopolitanism something you associate with modernity? Observe and give examples of ethnocentrism.
Cosmopolitanism is just opposite to ethnocentrism. A cosmopolitan does not evaluate the values and beliefs of other people according to his own rather he respect all the cultures equally. A Cosmopolitan is ready to adapt other cultures and share his own culture with others
For example the people of many Western countries believe that the people of eastern countries have inferior culture in the same manner the people of southern part of India believe that the culture of eastern and northern part of India is quite inferior to their this is ethnocentrism.
However the people of metro cities often go and adjust in other cities and even countries very easily just because of their Cosmopolitan nature.
What in your mind is the most effective agent of socialisation for your generation? How do you think it was different before?
Socialization is a process through which an infant gradually becomes a self aware and knowledgeable person and comes to know how to behave, live in the society to which he or she belongs.
Without socialization it will be difficult for an individual to behave like a human being. There are various agencies and institutions, which help in socialization like family, school, peer group, neighbourhood, occupational group, etc.
Now-a-days the media is a strong agent of socialization. Children learn many things from televisions and other media channels.
In today's world the communication style, the eating habits, the idea of decoration, fashion all are influenced by media. It gives shape to our personality at every stage of life.
In earlier time the agent of socialization were family and neighbourhood.