Culture Components and Characteristics

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LEARNING MODULE TITLE
Culture
LEARNING MODULE RATIONALE
The module aims to explain the implication of information communication and technology (ICT)
on education and classroom instruction. The module will give you an idea about the different issues
and cyber laws that affect the use of media and technology in education.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of the lesson, students are expected to be able to:
 Describe the components and characteristics of culture
1. Identify what makes up a culture
2. Employ cultural concepts within the context of day to day phenomena
Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:
Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

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TEACHING STRATEGIES/LEARNING ACTIVITIES
 Lecture
 Collaborative learning
RESOURCES/MATERIALS
Textbooks (See references)
LEARNING CONCEPT
What is Culture?
 Culture refers to the social heritage of a people-
those learned patterns for thinking, feeling, and
acting that are transmitted from one generation to
the next including the embodiment of these
patterns in material items (Vander Zanden,
1995).
 It a web that binds people together
 It is a mental construct that gives us a clue as we
go about our daily lives and how to enter into a
relationship with people.
 Culture also provides us a common
understanding that we use in doing our actions.
 Culture is the knowledge, language, values,
customs, and material objects that are passed
from person to person and from one generation to
the next in a human group or society (Kendall,
2011).
 To sociologists, culture is made up of all of the
ideas, beliefs, behaviors, and products common Fig 1: Culture is everything. Culture
to, and defining, a group’s way of life. Culture
encompasses everything humans create and have is us.
as they interact together.

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Culture can be either material or nonmaterial
Material culture
 Physical creation of society
Example:
Paintings, artifacts, loincloth, the Banawe Rice
Terraces is an example, Stonehenge in England,
computers
Fig 2: Material culture is physical
Non-material culture
 Abstract and reflects the beliefs, ideas of
society
Example:
Norms, mores, values, folkways, laws, traditions,
practices
Fig 3: Non-material culture is abstract

Characteristics of culture
1. Culture is learned
 An individual bases his/her behavior on his/her own experience.
 The action is guided by the absorbed habits, traits, and values through interaction.
2. Culture is transmitted
 It is transmitted through interaction from one generation to the next.
 The main agent of transmission is the family.
3. Culture is shared
 The values, norms, traditions, folkways, symbols and mores are shared by the
members of society
 It unites people
 It is the guidelines of society
4. Culture is patterned and integrated

 It is patterned in a unified whole through its people and incorporated in school,
workplace, and in our laws
5. Culture is adaptive and maladaptive
 No culture is static and each individual must cope to the changing society

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Components of culture
Culture is composed of a set of components that guide us in our daily activities and actions. These
components are shared and understood by every member of a cultural group that a violation of one
of these can put an individual into an outcast. Components of culture are reflection of the ideals of
the members of society. It represents the members’ adherent to their history, political ideology,
and religion.
1. Norms
 Every society in the world specifies what is appropriate
and inappropriate.
 Norms are social rules that specify acceptable and
unacceptable behavior in a given situation
 Norms guide us what we “should’, “ought”, “and
“must” do as well as the things that we “should not”,
“ought not”, and “must not” do.
 Norms give us a clue on how we present or conduct
ourselves to other people.
 They provide social definitions that give us proper way
of presenting ourselves to others so that we can align
them with those of other people.
 Established rules of behavior or standards of conduct
(Kendall, 2011).
Figure 4: Norms tell us what is
appropriate and what is not.
Types of norm
1. Prescriptive norms
 It defines what behavior is appropriate and
acceptable
Example: Parents are expected to take care of their

children; to support them financially, to take good care of
them physically, mentally and emotionally. Children are
also expected to take care of their parents particularly
when they are old and can no longer care physically and
financially for themselves.
Figure 5: Parents are expected
to take care of their child. .

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2. Proscriptive norms
 It defines what behavior is inappropriate and
unacceptable
Example: Texting while driving is inappropriate or texting

while somebody is talking.
Driving if you are coding (your plate number is not allowed
in a particular day is inappropriate. Or driving beyond the
allowed speed limit is unacceptable. Or driving without your
seatbelt.
Figure 5: Example of proscriptive
norms
3. Formal norms
 Are written down and involve specific punishments for those who have violated or those
who will violate
Example: Laws are the most common type of formal norms. A violation of the law has a
corresponding sanction or punishment.
*Sanctions can be negative and positive. Sanctions are rewards for appropriate behavior or
penalties for inappropriate behavior.
Example of positive sanction: If you are praised by your teacher for doing your report well, or if
you received a medal for winning a quiz bee or graduated valedictorian (honor), that is positive
sanction.
Example of negative sanction: If you have not paid your tax to the state and you were punished
say a jail term or sentence for tax evasion that is a negative sanction.
2. Folkways
 These are norms that do not carry severe sanction or punishment because members of the
society do not consider these a threat to the stability and future of the society.
 Members do not impose strict adherence to folkways because it is somewhat personal and
dependent on the individual preference.
Example: Using deodorant, brushing our teeth, grooms our hair, bathing, wearing appropriate
clothes for specific occasion.

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3. Mores
 These are norms that attach strong and severe sanction if violated because of its effect to
the society.
 Strongly held norms with moral and ethical connotations that may not be violated without
serious consequences in a particular culture (Kendall, 2011).
 Based on cultural values and are considered to be crucial to the well-being of the group
 Strongest mores are referred as taboos
Example of mores:
The prohibition against having sex in public, prohibition against destroying other’s property
Taboos
 Are mores so strong that their violation is considered to be extremely offensive to the
members of society
Example of taboos: Incest is an example of taboos; prohibits sex or marital relationship with a
kin such as between a brother and sister, mother and son and other incestuous acts.
4. Laws
 Laws are rules that are enforced by a special political organization composed of
individuals who enjoy the right to use force.
 A standardized norms enacted by the legislative body and enforced by the special unit or
institution of the state
 Laws are essential of stability, order and maintenance of the status quo.
 Laws are also based on culture
Example: Seat belt law, speed limit, not having sex with someone against their will (rape)
5. Values
 Values are broad ideas regarding what is desirable, correct, and good that most members
of a society share.
 Values are so general and abstract that they do not explicitly specify which behaviors are
acceptable and which are not.
 Values provide us with criteria and conceptions by which we evaluate people, objects and
events as to their relative worth, merit, beauty, or morality.
Example: Democracy, personal freedom, egalitarian or equality

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6. Symbols
 Symbols are acts or objects that have come to be socially accepted as standing for
something else
 Symbols are a powerful code or shorthand for representing and dealing with aspects of the
world about us.
 Symbols assume many different forms
*Culture cannot exist without symbols. It through symbols that people shared a common
representation to something such as language. Symbols can produce allegiance and hatred, and
love and hate. Symbols help us express our feelings. Symbols represent a meaning important to us.
Example: Flags, paintings, religious icons, badges, and uniforms also function as social symbols.
7. Language
 A socially structured system of sound patterns (words and sentences) with specific and
arbitrary meanings
 Language is the cornerstone of every culture.
 It is the chief vehicle by which people communicate ideas, information, attitudes, and
emotions to one another
.
Example: English, Filipino, French
Important Concepts
about Culture
Cultural change
Changes in technology influence cultural change. A change in material culture can also affect a
change in the nonmaterial culture. However, cultural change is inevitable because society will
continue to evolve.

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Cultural lag
 A lag or interval between the technical development of a society and its moral and legal
institutions (Kendall, 2012).
 Cultural lag occurs when material culture changes faster than nonmaterial culture
(Kendall, 2012).
Example: The advent of technology such as the internet has made it possible to send, chat, and
talk to people around the world. Because of this change, some people could even find a wife or
husband through the internet thereby altering a nonmaterial culture such as values of knowing
thoroughly the person before having a relationship. Thus, the material culture which is the
internet/computer has changed the value system of relationship and courtship.
The change in the cultural lag is set by discovery, invention and diffusion.
*Discovery
 A process of learning and discovering something that has been previously unknown.
Example: The discovery of gun powder has paved the way for the making of guns.
*Invention
 Invention is the process of reshaping the present cultural item or material culture into
something new
Example: The invention of guns, television, computers, airplanes, video games has negative and
positive impact on our lives.
Diffusion
Is the transmission of ideas, cultural items and social practices from one society to another
through such means as exploration, war, media, immigration or tourism (Kendall, 2012).
Cultural relativism
Views the behavior of a people from the perspective of their own culture. A perspective
characterized by cultural relativism does not ask whether or not a particular trait is moral or
immoral, but what part it plays in the life of a people.

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Ethnocentrism
 It a belief that one's group is at "the center of everything and all others are scaled
and rated with reference to it.
 The function of ethnocentrism is to increase one's appreciation and commitment to
one's cultural group.
 Ethnocentrism is found among families, tribes, nations, cliques, colleges,
fraternities, businesses, churches, and political parties.
 There is a tendency for people who belong to the same cultural group to define
reality from their own point of view
 The notion that one belongs to the “best people” provides a kind of social glue
cementing people together.
 Feelings of group pride, belongingness, and collective self-awareness promote
solidarity and stability.
 Ethnocentrism is a double-edged feeling
 It fosters a sense of oneness, overriding divisions within a group and binding
together people who otherwise are divided by economic conflicts and social
gradations but it sets people apart by promoting a longing not to belong to any
other group.
Xenocentrism
 The idea that what is foreign is best and that one's lifestyle, products, or ideas
are inferior to that of others
 Xenocentrism is centered on a product, an idea, or a lifestyle.and social
gradations but it sets people apart by promoting a longing not to belong to
any other group.
Syncretism
 The blending or fusing of the trait with a like element in another culture.
Example: Giving gifts or money to children during Christmas is common, sometimes the
money is put in a red small envelope (ampao). This kind of practice is influenced by the
Chinese but the celebration is influenced by the Spanish. This blending of culture is
practiced by the Filipinos.

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Counter culture
 A counterculture rejects many of the behavioral standards and guideposts that hold in
the dominant culture.
 A group that rejects dominant societal values and norms.
Example: Some Muslims particularly the fundamentalist adhere to the belief that the societal
values and norms of the US such as freedom, democracy and equality of women are harmful to the
ideas practiced by Islam, thus, the fundamentalist resort to terrorist activities in exercising their
dislike to what they believed as America’s imperialist actions to influence their societies to adopt
America’s values and norms.
Culture shock
 It is a situation brought about by unfamiliarity, lack of understanding, and inability to
communicate with the society they come in contact with.
 When people encounter another culture whose patterns of behavior are diverse from their
own, they might get disoriented or disorganized.
 Culture shock may be experienced by migrants.
Example: In the Philippines, husband and wife share the same room and bed but Japanese do not
have the same practice. Thus, some Filipina women who married Japanese are shocked to find out
such kind of arrangement. In other societies, display of affection to someone you love is common.
In the United States kissing is a common thing even in public places. In our society public display
of affection is viewed as (kalandian).
Popular culture
Three prevalent forms of popular culture:
 Fad
 Fashion
 Leisure activities
 Fad
 A temporary but widely copied activity followed by a large number of people

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Fads can be divided into four major categories:
1. Object fads - Are objects that people purchase or buy even if they do not have a use of it
Example: The use of wristband to support a candidate or support a cause is an example.
2. Activity fads- Pursuits or activities that are popular and followed by huge number of people
Example: Ear piercing, body tattooing, hair coloring
3. Idea fads- An idea that is common or famous for a particular age

Example: Hacking, leaking information, cyber information
4. Personality fads- Imitating or copying a certain personality particularly of famous people

Example: Dressing like lady Gaga , sporting a haircut like Justin Bieber, or copying the style
of some Korean famous telenovela characters
5. Fashion- A valued style of behavior, thinking or appearance
Example: Child rearing, education, arts, clothing, music and sports
.
Today, many parents train their children to speak English as a medium of
communication at home. This has become a fashion in many well-to do families.
Popular culture can be exported. It is very influential in re-shaping the culture of another society.
The United States and other Western countries are blamed for the propagation (spread) of pop
culture. Thus, the US is said to be a cultural imperialist.
Cultural imperialism
The influence or infusion of one’s culture into another cultural group
Example: The rise of China as an economic power house has created an interest in the study and
acquisition of the Chinese language which is Mandarin.
The use of English language as an international business language is viewed by many as a cultural
imperialism

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Sociological analysis of culture (Kendall, 2012)
Functionalist perspective Conflict perspective Symbolic-interactionist

perspective
Culture helps people get what Ideas are created and People create, maintain, or
they need in the society such as enforced by the powerful modify culture in their
basic necessity like food, class in the society and used everyday dealings or
socialization, involvement in the it to control people to interaction. These symbols are
community, training and follow them. created to control the behavior
transfer of ideas. of people

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REFERENCES
Kendall, D. E. (2012). Sociology in our times: the essentials (8th ed.). Belmont, CA:
Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
Schaefer, R. T. (2013). Sociology: a brief introduction (10th ed.). Dubuque, Iowa: McGraw-Hill.
Stolley, Kathy S. The Basics of Sociology. Basics of the Social Sciences. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood
Press, 2005.
Vander Zanden, J.W. & Hughes, M. (2002). Sociology: the core (6th ed.). Boston, Mass.: McGraw-Hill

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SELF-TEST
Directions: Choose the best answer.
1. It is everything which is socially learned and shared by members of the society.

A. Nature
B. Material Culture
C. Culture
D. folkway
2. Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of culture?

A. It is learned
B. It varies
C. It is static
D. It is transmitted across generations
3. Which is a cultural trait?

A. Establishing a family
B. Pinning an identification card on the chest
C. Managing an organization
D. Traveling to the holy land
4. A cluster of behavior patterns related to the general culture of a society and yet distinguished from it.
A. Sub-culture
B. Culture shock
C. Norms
D. Mores
5. Which group would most likely have a counterculture?

A. Musicians
B. Drug users
C. Singers
D. Dancers
6. When one considers the culture of another group as inferior to his own, this connotes:
A. Ethnocentrism
B. Cultural relativism
C. Assimilation
D. Acculturation

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7. The rightness or wrongness of what one does depend on where he is doing it.
A. Cultural integration
B. Cultural lag
C. Cultural relativism
D. Cultural trait
8. The culture that includes desirable behavior of the members of society. Formally condemned but
widely practiced.
A. Real culture
B. Ideal culture
C. Sub-culture
D. Counter-culture
9. The most important symbols are

A. Actions
B. Words
C. Colors
D. Behaviours
10. Which of the following is NOT a sign?

A. A clenched fist
B. A knock on the door
C. A flag
D. A yawning
11. Which of the following statements about culture is NOT true?

A. Every social group must have a culture of its own in order to function
B. Culture is a crime
C. Meeting the social expectations of several cultures is often the source of conflicts
D. Families do not have their own culture but instead reflect the culture of the larger society
12. The principal means through which culture is transmitted from generation to generation is:
A. Action
B. Diffusion
C. Language
D. Behaviors

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13. Which of the following is a technological lag?

A. Mang Pedro still uses horse drawn carriage in transporting his harvest from the farm to the
town proper
B. The barangay road is newly-paved by the local government in order to encourage investors
C. The young people in the barrio are using cellphone gadgets and connected in the web
D. The farmers are using handtractors instead of carabao in ploughing
14. The Nazi holocaust is an example of

A. Xenocentrism
B. Culture shock
C. Ethnocentrism
D. Cultural tolerance
15. Wearing shorts and slippers during a semi-formal cocktail party goes against:
A. Formal norms
B. Mores
C. Symbols
D. Folkways
16. The belief that imported products are always better than local products is an example of:
A. Ethnocentrism
B. Xenocentrism
C. Syncretism
D. Cultural lag
17. Culture is a mental construct that give us a clue as we go about our daily lives and how to enter
into a relationship with people.
A. True
B. False
18. Norms, mores and values are example of material culture.
A. True
B. False
19. Banawe rice terraces is an example of nonmaterial culture.
A. True
B. False
20. Culture is learned.
A. True
B. False

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Culture Components and Characteristics

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LEARNING MODULE #3

LEARNING MODULE TITLE

LEARNING MODULE RATIONALE

 Describe the components and characteristics of culture

1. Identify what makes up a culture

2. Employ cultural concepts within the context of day to day phenomena

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

TEACHING STRATEGIES/LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Textbooks (See references)

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Culture can be either material or nonmaterial

Fig 2: Material culture is physical

Fig 3: Non-material culture is abstract

4. Culture is patterned and integrated

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Example: Parents are expected to take care of their

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Example: Texting while driving is inappropriate or texting

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Example: Democracy, personal freedom, egalitarian or equality

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Fads can be divided into four major categories:

3. Idea fads- An idea that is common or famous for a particular age

4. Personality fads- Imitating or copying a certain personality particularly of famous people

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Sociological analysis of culture (Kendall, 2012)

Functionalist perspective Conflict perspective Symbolic-interactionist

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

Directions: Choose the best answer.

1. It is everything which is socially learned and shared by members of the society.

2. Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of culture?

3. Which is a cultural trait?

5. Which group would most likely have a counterculture?

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

9. The most important symbols are

10. Which of the following is NOT a sign?

11. Which of the following statements about culture is NOT true?

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

13. Which of the following is a technological lag?

14. The Nazi holocaust is an example of

Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Angelo Y. Balverde RIVIERA G. GUIYAB ALMA V. DELA CRUZ, Ph.D.

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