Understanding Social Norms, Laws, and Culture

Norms

• Folkways: norms that may be violated without serious consequences, often referred to as repeating habits
• Mores: norms with moral connotations, considered strong norms
• Laws: norms that are legally enacted and enforced
• Taboo: illegal or prohibited norms

Socialization and Enculturation

• Socialization: the lifelong process of forging identity through social interactions
• Enculturation: the process by which an individual learns or acquires the important aspects of their society's culture

Society and Culture

• Anthropology: considers culture as the central focus, examines and provides explanations for the existence of different cultural patterns and similarities and differences between cultures
• Relativistic approach: considers culture as equal
• Ethnocentric approach: believes that one's culture is superior to other cultures
• Xenocentric approach: considers one's culture as inferior to others
• Cultural Relativism: recognizes and accepts the cultural differences between societies

Perspectives on Culture and Society

• Sociology: relates culture to the overall context of social order
• Structural-functionalism: operates on the assumption that society is a stable and orderly system, with equilibrium
• Conflict Theory: assumes that there is a constant power struggle among social groups and institutions within society
• Symbolic interactionism: views individual and group behavior and social interactions as defining features of society
• Social Exchange: gives and takes

Political Science

• Examines culture as a vital aspect of society
• Multiculturalism: an ideology that acknowledges and promotes cultural diversity within society
• Cultural Sensitivity: advances awareness and acceptance of cultural differences, encourages a critical stance in dealing with diversity issues

John Locke and Socialization

• John Locke: British Enlightenment philosopher, believed that human mind is a blank slate or tabula rasa
• Socialization: a lifelong process of social interaction, enables people to acquire their identities and necessary survival skills in society

Identity, Culture, and Society

• Identity: distinctive characteristics that define an individual or group, can be influenced by sexual orientation, gender, or nationality
• Culture: a society's way of life, allows people to understand themselves in relation to others and provides a lens for what is considered the "right way" of doing things
• Society: a group of people living in a community, a web of social relationships that is always changing
• Suffrage: the right to vote

Anthropology

• Anthropology: the systematic study of the biological, cultural, and social aspects of men
• Social Anthropology: studies how social patterns and practices and cultural variation develop across different societies
• Cultural Anthropology: studies cultural variations across societies and examines the need to understand each culture in its own context
• Linguistic Anthropology: studies language and discourse and how they reflect and shape different aspects of human society and culture