WEEK 3

CHART:ADAPTATION TO ANY HOST CULTURE.

By: Boundless.com

The Origins of Culture

Culture is a central concept in anthropology, encompassing the range of human

phenomena that cannot be attributed to genetic inheritance.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1.Paraphrase what is currently thought to be the reason for the development/origin of

language and complex culture.

Key Points

 The term ” culture ” has two meanings: (1) the evolved human capacity to
classify and represent experiences with symbols, and to act creatively; and
(2) the distinct ways that people living in different parts of the world acted
creatively and classified or represented their experiences.
  Distinctions are currently made between the physical artifacts created by a
society, its so-called material culture and everything else, including the
intangibles such as language, customs, etc. that are the main referent of the
term “culture”.
 The origin of language, understood as the human capacity of complex
symbolic communication, and the origin of complex culture are often thought
to stem from the same evolutionary process in early man.
 Language and culture both emerged as a means of using symbols to
construct social identity and maintain coherence within a social group too
large to rely exclusively on the pre-human ways of building community (for
example, grooming).

Key Terms

 community: A group sharing a common understanding and often the same

language, manners, tradition and law.

In the 20th century, “culture” emerged as a central concept in anthropology,

encompassing the range of human phenomena that cannot be attributed to genetic
inheritance. Specifically, the term “culture” in American anthropology had two
meanings: (1) the evolved human capacity to classify and represent experiences
with symbols, and to act imaginatively and creatively; and (2) the distinct ways that
people living in different parts of the world acted creatively and classified or
represented their experiences. Distinctions are currently made between the
physical artifacts created by a society, its so-called material culture and everything
else, including the intangibles such as language, customs, etc. that are the main
referent of the term “culture.”

The origin of language, understood as the human capacity of complex symbolic

communication, and the origin of complex culture are often thought to stem from
the same evolutionary process in early man. Evolutionary anthropologist Robin I.
Dunbar has proposed that language evolved as early humans began to live in large
communities that required the use of complex communication to maintain social
coherence. Language and culture then both emerged as a means of using symbols
to construct social identity and maintain coherence within a social group too large
to rely exclusively on pre-human ways of building community (for example,
grooming).

However, languages, now understood as the particular set of speech norms of a

particular community, are also a part of the larger culture of the community that
speak them. Humans use language as a way of signaling identity with one cultural
group and difference from others. Even among speakers of one language, several
different ways of using the language exist, and each is used to signal affiliation with
particular subgroups within a larger culture.
Mechanisms of Cultural Change

The belief that culture can be passed from one person to another means that
cultures, although bounded, can change.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

2.Describe at least two mechanisms which foster cultural change. SUPPORT YOUR
ANSWERS.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Key Points

 Cultures are internally affected by both forces encouraging change and

forces resisting change. These forces are related to social structures and
natural events, and are involved in the perpetuation of cultural ideas and
practices within current structures, which are themselves subject to change.
 Cultural change can have many causes, including the environment,
technological inventions, and contact with other cultures.
 In diffusion, the form of something (though not necessarily its meaning)
moves from one culture to another.
 Acculturation has different meanings, but in this context it refers to
replacement of the traits of one culture with those of another, such has
happened to certain Native American tribes and to many indigenous peoples
across the globe during the process of colonization.
 “Direct Borrowing” on the other hand tends to refer to technological or
tangible diffusion from one culture to another.
 Griswold suggests that culture changes through the contextually dependent
and socially situated actions of individuals; macro-level culture influences the
individual who, in turn, can influence that same culture.
 In anthropology, diffusion theory states that the form of something moves
from one culture to another, but not its meaning. Acculturation theory refers
to replacement of the traits of one culture with those of another.

Fundamentally, although bounded, cultures can change. Cultures are internally

affected by both forces encouraging change and forces resisting change. These
forces are related to social structures and natural events, and are involved in the
perpetuation of cultural ideas and practices within current structures, which are
themselves subject to change. Resistance can come from habit, religion, and the
integration and interdependence of cultural traits. For example, men and women
have complementary roles in many cultures. One sex might desire changes that
affect the other, as happened in the second half of the 20 th century in western
cultures (see, for example, the women’s movement), while the other sex may be
resistant to that change (possibly in order to maintain a power imbalance in their
favor).

Cultural change can have many causes, including the environment, technological
inventions, and contact with other cultures. Cultures are externally affected via
contact between societies, which may also produce—or inhibit—social shifts and
changes in cultural practices. War or competition over resources may impact
technological development or social dynamics. Additionally, cultural ideas may
transfer from one society to another, through diffusion or acculturation.

Discovery and invention are mechanisms of social and cultural change. Discovery
refers to the finding of new knowledge within an existing realm. Generally, it relates
to discovering new understanding of a particular behavior or ritual. Invention is the
creation of a new device or process. New discoveries often lead to new inventions
by people.

The Change of Symbolic Meaning Over Time: The symbol of the ankh has its roots in Egyptian
religious practice, but the symbol diffused over time and was adopted by other groups, including pagans,
as a religious symbol.

In diffusion, the form of something (though not necessarily its meaning) moves
from one culture to another. For example, hamburgers, mundane in the United
States, seemed exotic when introduced into China. “Stimulus diffusion” (the
sharing of ideas) refers to an element of one culture leading to an invention or
propagation in another.

Acculturation has different meanings, but in this context it refers to replacement of

the traits of one culture with those of another, such has happened to certain Native
American tribes and to many indigenous peoples across the globe during the
process of colonization. Related processes on an individual level include
assimilation (adoption of a different culture by an individual) and transculturation.

Cultural Lag

The term “cultural lag” refers to the fact that culture takes time to catch up with
technological innovations, resulting in social problems.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

3.Produce (FICTIONAL OR REAL) an example of cultural lag using an example of the

tension between material and non-material culture. SUPPORT YOUR ANSWER.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Key Points

 Cultural lag is not only a concept, as it also relates to a theory and

explanation in sociology.
 It helps identify and explain social problems and also predict future
problems.
 According to Ogburn, cultural lag is a common societal phenomenon due to
the tendency of material culture to evolve and change rapidly and
voluminously while non-material culture tends to resist change and remain
fixed for a far longer period of time.
 Due to the opposing nature of these two aspects of culture, adaptation of
new technology becomes rather difficult.

The term cultural lag refers to the notion that culture takes time to catch up with
technological innovations, and that social problems and conflicts are caused by this
lag. Cultural lag is not only a concept, as it also relates to a theory and explanation
in sociology. Cultural lag helps to identify and explain social problems and to
predict future problems.

The term was coined by the sociologist William F. Ogburn in his 1922 work “Social
Change with Respect to Culture and Original Nature. ” According to Ogburn,
cultural lag is a common societal phenomenon due to the tendency of material
culture to evolve and change rapidly while non-material culture tends to resist
change and remain fixed for a far longer period of time. His theory of cultural lag
suggests that a period of maladjustment occurs when the non-material culture is
struggling to adapt to new material conditions.

Due to the opposing nature of these two aspects of culture, adaptation of new
technology becomes rather difficult. As explained by James W. Woodward, when
material conditions change, changes are felt in the non-material culture as well. But
these changes in the non-material culture do not match exactly with the change in
the material culture. This delay is the cultural lag.

Cultural lag creates problems for a society in different ways. Cultural lag is seen as
a critical ethical issue because failure to develop broad social consensus on
appropriate uses of modern technology may lead to breakdowns in social solidarity
and the rise of social conflict. The issue of cultural lag tends to permeate any
discussion in which the implementation of some new technology can become
controversial for society at large.