CULTURE AND SOCIALIZATION THE FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIAL STRUCTURE

CULTURE AND SOCIALIZATION THE FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIAL STRUCTURE

BUILDING SOCIAL STRUCTURE NATURE vs. NURTURE

GREAT QUESTION • WHY DO WE DO WHAT WE DO? – SOCIOLOGICAL RESPONSE: • WE LEARN OUR SOCIAL BEHAVIOR – GROUP INTERACTION – UNIQUE INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCE

SOCIAL BEHAVIOR • TWO LEVELS –MACRO –MICRO

SHARED SOCIAL VARIABLES • CULTURE • MATERIAL • NON-MATERIAL

NON-MATERIAL CULTURE • AN HISTORICALLY DURABLE FRAMEWORK – RELIGION – LANGUAGE – FAMILY STRUCTURE – MUSIC – ART

MATERIAL CULTURE • THE CONTEMPORARY BACKBONE OF AMERICAN SOCIETY – POSTMODERN SOCIETY – CONSUMERISM – GLOBALIZATION

DEPENDENCE ON SHARED COMPONENTS OF STRUCTURE • NORMS – THE BEHAVIOR WE MOST COMMONLY EXPECT TO ENCOUNTER – MORÉS – CUSTOMS – FOLKWAYS

COMPLEXITY OF NORMS • HISTORICALLY – RELATIVE ISOLATION • CONTEMPORARY – CULTURAL FUSION • MASS MEDIA • ELECTRONIC MEDIAL • TRAVEL • EMERGENT CONFLICT

SOCIAL IMPACT? • CULTURE SHOCK – RESULT OF ENCOUNTER WITH BEHAVIOR DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND OR ACCEPT • CULTURAL RELATIVISM – JUDGEMENT BASED VALUATION/DEVALUATION OF SOCIAL PRACTICES AND BEHAVIORS

ETHNOCENTRIC PROCESSES • USING ONE’S OWN CULTURE AS A STANDARD FOR THE JUDGEMENT OF OTHER CULTURES WITH ELEVATION OF SELF BEING THE MOST COMMON, BUT NOT UNIVERSAL, RESULT.

IMPACT OF CULTURAL CONFLICT • FEAR • SUSPICION • REJECTION • CONTEMPT