Cultural Diversity

1
Cultural Diversity

• Chapter 2
• Section 2 Cultural Variation

2
Cultural Variation

• What do we have in common?
• Variation among Societies
• Studying Variation
• Variation within societies

3
What do we have in Common?

• We all have the same basic needs but cultures are
  very different
• Some needs are basic that all societies must
  develop certain features to ensure their
  fulfillments cultural universals.

• George Murdock examined hundreds of cultures in
  an attempt to determine what general traits are
  common to all cultures.
• Examples cooking, dancing, family, feasting
  funeral ceremonies, housing, languages, music,
  myths, religions.

4
George Murdock

• In all cultures the need for families is the
  same.
• Family
• Ensures new members will be added to society
• Members will be cared for until they can fend for
  themselves
• Introduces children to the components of their
  culture
• The makeup of families from culture to culture

5
Variation Among Societies

• Margaret Mead
• Conducted research to find out if our temperment
  is based on what we learn or inherited
  characteristics or from cultural influences.
• She observed several cultures from New Guinea.

• The Arapesh
• The Mundugumor
• Comparing the two societies
• Class Activity

6
Comparing Tribes

• Arapesh
• Compassionate
• Love
• Traditional
• Trusting
• Close
• Kind
• Content
• Family
• Peaceful
• Idealic
• Caring

• Mundugumor
• Hostile
• Aggressive
• Violent
• Hate
• Cruel
• Power
• Distant
• Jealous
• Scattered
• Warriors

7
Studying Variation

• Ethnocentrism
• Have you ever felt negative feelings toward
  another culture.
• We often feel this way about cultures that are
  different from their own
• Ethnocentrism is the tendency to view ones own
  culture and group as superior.

• Ethnocentrism is seen in all cultures, but when
  taken to the extreme it does not allow a culture
  to grow and accept new ideas, it also runs the
  risk of alienating certain members of its group.

8
Cultural Relativism

• It is important to keep an open mind toward
  cultural variation.
• Cultural Relativism is the belief that cultures
  should be judged by their own standards rather
  then by applying the standards of another culture.

• It is an attempt to understand cultural practices
  from the points of view of the members of the
  society being studied.

9
Variation Within Societies

• Variation exist among all societies.
• You share a common culture with all other
  Americans.
• American culture is collection of traits,
  complexes and patterns that are distinct from
  those is other societies.

• Subculture some groups in society share values,
  norms, and behaviors that are not shared by the
  entire population.
• Give examples and support them.

10
Subcultures

• Examples
• Age
• Gender
• Ethnic
• Religious
• Poltical
• Geographic
• Social Class and occupational

11
Counterculture

• In some cases, however, subculture practices are
  consciously intended to challenge the values of
  the larger society.
• Counterculture are groups that reject the major
  values, norms, and practices of the larger
  society and replaces them with a new set of
  cultural patterns.

• Examples
• Organized crime family
• Punk movement
• Hippies
• Anarchists