UNIT ONE

SOCIO-CULTURAL ORIENTATION
It is rather hard to take “Sociology” apart from “Culture” because these
two terms are still overlapped. Culture is in social science and vice versa. The
following reading passages will help you to identify the scope of Sociology and
Culture.
PASSAGE 1
Sociology and Culture
WORDS TO KNOW
anthropology (n) elk (n)
aspect (n) institution (n)
class (n) interaction (n)
concept (n) interchangeable (a)
component (n) likewise (ad)
constitute (v) organization (n)
concentrate (v) ritual (n)
discipline (n) sociology (n)
distinguish (v) somewhat (ad)
ACTIVITY
Direction: Read the passage and then answer the questions that follow.
Sociology is the scientific study of human social relations or group life.
Other disciplines within the social sciences including economics, political science,
anthropology and psychology are also concerned with topics that fall within the
scope of human society. Sociologists examine the ways in which social structures
and institutions such as class, family, community, and power and social problems
such as crime and abuse that influence society.
Social interaction, or the responses of individuals to each other, is perhaps
the basic sociological concept, because such interaction is the elementary
component of all relationships and groups that make up human society. Sociologists
who concentrate on the details of particular interactions as they occur in everyday
life are sometimes called microsociologists; those concerned with the larger patterns
of relations among major social sectors, such as the state and the economy, and
even with international relations, are called macrosociologists. (Passage adapted
from Dennis., 2001)
 Culture, in anthropology, the patterns of behavior and thinking that people
living in social groups learn, create, and share. Culture distinguishes one human
group from others. It also distinguishes humans from other animals. A people's
culture includes their beliefs, rules of behavior, language, rituals, art, technology,
styles of dress, ways of producing and cooking food, religion, and political and
economic systems.
Culture is the most important concept in anthropology (the study of all
aspects of human life, past and present). Anthropologists commonly use the term
culture to refer to a society or group in which many or all people live and think in
the same ways. Likewise, any group of people who share a common culture and in
particular, common rules of behavior and a basic form of social organization that
constitutes a society. Thus, the terms culture and society are somewhat
interchangeable. However, while many animals live in societies, such as herds of
elk or packs of wild dogs, only humans have culture. (Passage adapted from
Bodley, 2001)
Exercise 1.1 Answer the questions.
1. What are “Sociology” and “Culture”?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
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2. What are considered to be social structures and institutions?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
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3. In your opinion what is social interaction?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
4. Who is considered to be macrosociologist?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
5. Do you think how culture takes part in society? Explain.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
 Exercise 1.2 A. Write the map depicting the other disciplines within
sociology.

SOCIOLOGY

B. Write the map depicting the people’s culture

CULTURE
 PASSAGE 2
The characteristics and categories of culture
WORDS TO KNOW
abide (v) intricacy (n)
adaptive (a) flexibly (ad)
consume (v) patriotism (n)
characteristic (14n) predispose (v)
inherit (v) preserve (v)
instinct (n) skyscraper (n)
ACTIVITY
Direction: Read the passage below and answer the questions.
Culture has several distinguishing characteristics. (1) Culture is symbolic. It
is based on symbols—abstract ways of referring to and understanding ideas,
objects, feelings, or behaviors—and the ability to communicate with symbols using
language. (2) Culture is learned. While people biologically inherit many physical
traits and behavioral instincts, culture is socially inherited. A person must learn
culture from other people in a society. (3) Culture is shared. People in the same
society share common behaviors and ways of thinking through culture. (4) Culture
is adaptive. People use culture to flexibly and quickly adjust to changes in the
world around them. Details are as follows;
(1) Culture Is Symbolic
People have culture primarily because they can communicate with and
understand symbols. Symbols allow people to develop complex thoughts and to
exchange those thoughts with others. Language and other forms of symbolic
communication, such as art, enable people to create, explain, and record new ideas
and information. A symbol has either an indirect connection or no connection at all
with the object, idea, feeling, or behavior to which it refers. For instance, most
people in the United States find some meaning in the combination of the colors
red, white, and blue. But those colors themselves have nothing to do with, for
instance, the land that people call the United States, the concept of patriotism, or
the U.S. national anthem.
 To convey new ideas, people constantly invent new symbols, such as for
mathematical formulas. In addition, people may use one symbol, such as a single
word, to represent many different ideas, feelings, or values. Thus, symbols provide
a flexible way for people to communicate even very complex thoughts with each
other. For example, only through symbols can architects, engineers, and
construction workers communicate the information necessary to construct a
skyscraper or bridge. People have the capacity at birth to construct, understand, and
communicate through symbols, primarily by using language. Research has shown,
for example, that infants have a basic structure of language—a sort of universal
grammar—built into their minds. Infants are thus predisposed to learn the
languages spoken by the people around them.
(2) Culture Is Learned
People are not born with culture; they have to learn it. For instance, people
must learn to speak and understand a language and to abide by the rules of a
society. In many societies, all people must learn to produce and prepare food and
to construct shelters. In other societies, people must learn a skill to earn money,
which they then use to provide for themselves. In all human societies, children
learn culture from adults. Anthropologists call this process enculturation, or cultural
transmission. Enculturation is a long process. Just learning the intricacies of a
human language, a major part of enculturation, takes many years. Families
commonly protect and enculturate children in the households of their birth for 15
years or more. Only at this point can children leave and establish their own
households. People also continue to learn throughout their lifetimes. Thus, most
societies respect their elders, who have learned for an entire lifetime.
Humans are not alone in their ability to learn behaviors, only in the amount
and complexity of what they can learn. For example, members of a group of
chimpanzees may learn to use a unique source of food or to fashion some simple
tools, behaviors that might distinguish them from other chimpanzee groups. But
these unique ways of life are minor in comparison to the rich cultures that
distinguish different human societies. Lacking speech, chimps are very limited in
what they can learn, communicate to others, and pass on from generation to
generation.
 (3) Culture Is Shared
People living together in a society share culture. For example, almost all
people living in the United States share the English language, dress in similar
styles, eat many of the same foods, and celebrate many of the same holidays. All
the people of a society collectively create and maintain culture. Societies preserve
culture for much longer than the life of any one person. They preserve it in the
form of knowledge, such as scientific discoveries; objects, such as works of art;
and traditions, such as the observance of holidays.
(4) Culture Is Adaptive
Culture helps human societies survive in changing natural environments.
Cultural adaptation has made humans one of the most successful species on the
planet. Through history, major developments in technology, medicine, and nutrition
have allowed people to reproduce and survive in ever-increasing numbers.
However, the successes of culture can also create problems in the long run. Over
the last 200 years, people have begun to use large quantities of natural resources
and energy and to produce a great amount of material and chemical wastes. The
global population now consumes some crucial natural resources—such as
petroleum, timber, and mineral ores—faster than nature can produce them. Many
scientists believe that in the process of burning fuels and producing wastes, people
may be altering the global climate in unpredictable and possibly harmful ways.
Thus, the adaptive success of the present-day global culture of production and
commerce may be temporary. (Passage adapted from Bodley, 2001)

Exercise 1.3 Answer the questions.

1. What are characteristics of culture?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
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2. How do people learn culture?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
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 3. How do people preserve culture?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
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4. In what way does culture create problems?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
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5. Give the examples of cultural symbols.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Exercise 1.4 Complete in the blank with an appropriate word in the box.

ideological culture social culture material culture categories

anthropology religious three sculpture

Anthropologists have described a number of different ………………..of culture.

For example, a simple distinction can be made between cultural objects, such as
types of clothing, and cultural beliefs, such as forms of……………….. Many early
anthropological definitions of culture are essentially descriptions of categories of
culture or cultural items.
………………………………………………came up with simpler categorizations of culture.
A common practice is to divide all of culture into …………………broad categories:
material, social, and ideological. A fourth category, the arts, has characteristics of
both material and ideological culture. ………………………………………..includes products of
human manufacture, such as technology. ……………………………………pertains to people's
forms of social organization—how people interact and organize themselves in
groups. ……………………………………………….relates to what people think, value, believe,
and hold as ideals. The arts include such activities and areas of interest as music,
…………………………, painting, pottery, theater, cooking, writing, and fashion.
 PASSAGE 3
Cultural Practices
WORDS TO KNOW
amazement (n) despite (prep)
embarrass (v) frustrate (v)
backpack (n) incident (n)
bewilder (v) proceed (v)
confuse (v) whisper (v)

ACTIVITY
Direction: Read the passage 3.1and passage 3.2 and do the exercises that
come after.
Passage 3.1 Thai and American Culture: Eating in Class
Sompoet has just arrived from Thailand to begin working on his degree at
an American university. Before his arrival to the United States, Sompoet has read
several books about America, its culture. Despite his preparation, however, several
confusing and frustrating incidents occurred during his first weeks in the United
States.
On Monday Sompoet was always very busy. He had class all day and
hardly had any time for lunch. One day he showed up at his history class a couple
minutes before it started and told one of his classmate, Susan, that he was really
busy all morning and didn’t have time for lunch. The bell rang and the teacher
came into the class. Susan opened her backpack and took out a small bag of potato
chips and a can of soda and gave them to Sompoet. Sompoet was very surprised
and embarrassed. He whispered thank you to his friend and refused the food.
Sompoet was even more bewildered when Susan took another bag potato chips and
started eating them in class. To Sompoet’s amazement, the teacher did not make
any comments on Susan’s behavior and proceeded with the class as usual. (Passage
adapted from Julia, 2002)
Exercise 1.5 Answer the following questions.
1. What motivated Sompoet to act the way he did?
a. Sompoet did not like Susan as a person and did not want to accept
food from her.
b. Sompoet was not used to people sharing food with him.
c. Sompoet considered eating in class disrespectful towards the teacher.
2. What attitudes or values appear to be important in Thai society based on
Sompoet’s action?
a. In Thailand, people never share their food with others outside of
their family.
b. In Thailand, eating in the class is impolite and shows disrespect
towards a teacher.
c. In Thailand, women are not allowed to share food with men.
3. Why do you think Susan behaved the way she did?
a. Susan felt obligated to share her food with Sompoet.
b. Susan always eats in class.
c. Susan realized that Sompoet was hungry and was willing to share
her food with him.
4. What attitudes or values appear to be important in American society
based on Susan and the teacher’s behavior?
a. In the United States, having a snack during a class dose not mean
that students do not respect their teacher. Teachers expect active
participation in the class and do not mind students’ having small
snacks if that makes them more comfortable and willing to engage
in classroom work.
b. In the United States, it is considered rude not to share food with the
people around you.
c. In the United States, teachers encourage students to share everything
to make them feel more connected to each other and become a
unified group of people.
 5. What could have been done differently to avoid this cross-cultural
misunderstanding
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Passage 3.2 Thai and American Culture: Cheating during Quiz

Sawitree, a student from Thailand, won a scholarship to go to an American

university, She was very excited about going to the United States and did a lot of
reading about American culture, but her first week in the United States made her
very confused and frustrated.
Sawitree stayed up all night long writing a term paper for her psychology
class. Next morning, during her history class the teacher unexpectedly announced
that they were going to have a pop quiz on the material they covered in the last
two classes. Sawitree was afraid that she was going to fail it as neither did her
homework nor reviewed the material from the previous class. Bill, Sawitree’s friend
from the tennis club and also a classmate in history, seemed to be unconcerned
about the quiz. During the quiz, Sawitree was asking Bill for the answer to the
questions she was not sure of. However, Bill seemed to be annoyed by her
questions and did not want to share his answer. Sawitree’s feelings were hurt. To
make the matter worse, the teacher, having seen what Sawitree was doing, asked
her to hand in incomplete test and to leave the class. (Passage adapted from Julia,
2002)
Exercise 1.6 Answer the following questions.
1. What motivated Sawitree to act the way she did?
a. Sawitree expected Bill to help her out during the quiz because she
considered him her friend.
b. Sawitree wanted Bill to help her with the quiz because she was
selfish and wanted to get a good grade no matter what.
c. Sawitree expected Bill to help her out during the test because she
was a woman.
2. What attitudes or values appear to be important in Thai society based on
Sawitree’s action?
a. In Thailand, friends are supposed to stick together in their battle
against authority. Teachers are considered to be such authority.
b. In Thailand, men are supposed to help women in all situations.
c. In Thailand, students always work on their tests and quizzes together
as a team.
3. Why do you think Bill behaved the way he did?
a. Bill did not want to help Sawitree because he considered her as
competition in his Spanish class.
b. Bill did not like Sawitree as a person and did not want to help her
out during the quiz.
c. Bill liked Sawitree as a person but did not want to help her cheat on
the quiz as he considered it morally wrong.
4. What attitudes or values appear to be important in American society
based on Bill and the teacher’s behavior?
a. In the United States, it is considered unacceptable to ask for help.
b. In the United States, students never help each other in class no
matter how much they like each other.
c. In the United States, cheating on tests is considered unacceptable
and wrong. It may lead to academic dismissal. Students are supposed
to get grades for what they know and not what they have copied
from someone else’s paper.
5. What could have been done differently to avoid this cross-cultural
misunderstanding
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
 REVIEW EXERCISE
Direction: Put T in front of the sentence that is true and F in front of the
sentence that is false.
……………1. Sociology is not concerned with social interaction.
……………2. Microsociologist is a person who studies broader patterns of
relations among major social factors.
……………3. Human and animal are distinguished by culture.
……………4. Language is a symbol of culture.
……………5. People are born with culyure.
……………6. We can preserve culture in the form of music and dance.
…………..7. Food, fashion, style of dress are considered to be one of cultural
characteristics.
……………8. The invention of technology is an ideological culture.
……………9. Learning English is learning culture.
…………..10. Culture can make problems in our socitety.

REFERENCES

Hume W, Dennis. (2001) Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia. [Online] Available:

http://encarta.msn.com [Accessed: July 26, 2002]
John H, Bodley. (2001) Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia. [Online] Available:
http://encarta.msn.com [Accessed: June 20, 2002]
Stakhnevich, Julia. (2002) “Using Critical Incidents to Teach Cross-Cultural
Sensitivity” The Internet TESL Journal. Vol. VIII, No.3 (March 2002) [Online].
Available: http://iteslj.org/lesson/stakhnvich-Critical.html. [Accedded: March 8,
2002]