Chapter 11: Social Structure and Demographics

Question 1

What is the definition of culture?

Answer 1

Culture can be defined as encompassing the entire lifestyle for a given group.

• it binds our nation-states, political institutions, marketplaces, religions, and ideologies.
• culture flavors our interpretations of the world, and is generally passed through familial lines.
• culture is what makes human societies unique from one another

Question 2

What are the two different categories that sociologists view culture under?

Answer 2

• Material Culture
• Symbolic Culture

Question 3

What is material culture?

Answer 3

Material Culture –> The examination of artifacts drives the concept of material culture, in which sociologists explore the meaning of objects of a given society.

• Material Culture includes the physical items one associates with a given groups, such as:
  
  • artwork
  • emblems
  • clothing
  • jewelry
  • foods
  • buildings
  • tools
• Material Culture is often most visible during ceremonies, such as birthdays, weddings, and funerals.

**Material Culture is associated with artifcats (objects). Symbolic culture is associated with ideas.**

Question 4

What is symbolic culture (also called nonmaterial culture)?

Answer 4

Symbolic Culture –> focuses on the ideas that represent a group of people.

• These may be encoded in:
  
  • mottos
  • songs
  • catchphrases
  • themes that are pervasive in the culture
• Material Culture is often the tangible embodiment of the underlying ideas of symbolic culture.

**Material Culture is associated with artifcats (objects). Symbolic culture is associated with ideas.**

Question 5

What is the phenomenon, Culture Lag?

Answer 5

Symbolic culture is usually slower to change than material culture, which can lead to the phenomenon of culture lag.

• The expansion of devices and technology in contemporary times are prototypical examples of culture lag: where as American culture still prizes individuality and privacy, the development of smartphones and social media push toward a more community-oriented and less private world.

Question 6

True or False:

Language is the most highly developed and complex symbol system used by most cultures.

Answer 6

True

Question 7

Fill in the Blank:

______ culture includes both cognitive and behavioral components; thatis, it informs cultural values and belief, as well as cultural norms and communication styles.

Answer 7

Symbolic Culture

Question 8

Fill in the Blank:

Understanding a group’s _____ is critical to understanding its culture.

Answer 8

language

Question 9

What are “values” defined in sociology?

Answer 9

Values are what a person deems important in life, which dictates one’s ethical principals and standards of behavior.

Question 10

What is meant by “cultural barriers”?

Answer 10

When a cultural difference impedes interaction with others.

Question 11

What is the difference between a value and a belief?

Answer 11

• Value -> what a person deems important in life, which dictates one’s ethical principals and standards of behavior.
• Belief -> is something that an individual accepts to be true.