Chapter 4Unity and

Diversity of Culture

How does One Find Out About Similarities and Difference in Culture?

• The comparative approach in social science research employs a wide variety of sociological techniques. Among those which sociologist have frequently resorted to in the study of personality, society, and culture are cross-cultural and inter-societal comparisons.

• An elaborated source of data for cross-cultural and inter-societal comparisons in the Human Resources Area Files (Murdock 1963).

• The Family of Man (1955) is an expressive

photographic exhibition of humanity of all times.

• Max Weber’s study (1958) on the origins of the spirit of capitalism is illustrative of the attempt. He studied not only societies where capitalism flourished but also societies where capitalism failed to develop.

Comparative Technique

• Study of specific difference in societies which are basically similar.

• The approach centering on specific similarities among societies or sub-groups which are basically different.

Durkheim’s Three Basic Schemes for Comparative Studies (1947)

Human biological drives

• C. Kluchohm (1954) pointed out that cultures are preconditioned by human being’s biological drives which appear to be products of individual’s organic balance.

• Mark Zborowski (1953) stated that in human societies, biological processes vital for one’s survival acquire social and cultural significance.

Psychicunity• One’s psychic unity is not exactly identical with his or her

inherited psychological traits.i. Cognitive structure is made up of concepts and beliefs by

which one defines the world around him or her ( Newcomb, Turner and Converse 1965:23-27). It usually reflects the values and beliefs that are widely shared by people within a cultural environment

ii. Habit structure. Habits, which are acquired through learning are regularly patterned ways of acting, feeling, or thinking. Perception is the process through which people translate their observation into internalized, meaningful experiences

• Trait configurations. A trait configuration is any characteristic that can be observed or measured. It refers to a repetitive way of reaching to a particular event.

• Acquired predisposition. Predispositions refers to the repetitive manner in which an individual appears inclined to favor or disfavor a person or group, an object, or a situation or event that arises periodically in his or her environment. Preference are the individual’ tendencies to accept or reject a wide variety of objects. Attitudes are comprised of a number of relatively enduring tendencies to accept or reject an object, concept, or entity.

Dependence upon group life

• Many human needs and motivates are derived from sources other than organic

Physical and Social Environment

• Mostesquieu (1950:315, 317-318) believes that the geographical environment can have significant conditioning effects upon the economic aspects of societies.

Diversity in cultures1.) Cultural variability. Cultures differ because of the great variety of

solutions people of different societies evolve in solving life problems, Aldous Huxley (in R.E.Farson 1965:69) points out that the intellectual capabilities of human beings changed over the last twenty or thirty thousand years.

• Sex roles also differ in different societies. Sex difference are based on biological difference. However, the way a man or a woman is expected on act is prescribed by society.

• The division of labor by sexes in universal, but task assignment to the sexes in a matter of cultural definition. Maleness and femaleness are institutionalized as statuses and become the core of their identities.

• Human ingenuity is manifested in differences of aptitudes and skills to form new combinations and ideas from the natural and social environment. People vary in their awareness and observation, interest in, and experimentation with the resources around them.

• Cultural variability arises also from society’s tendency to preserve cultural practices that were one time necessary and reasonable but which later became outdated or useless

2.) Cultural integration. Cultures are also vary significantly in the degree of their being internally consistent in their patterns of value, beliefs, and behavior.

• A relatively well integrated culture is one where there are no outstanding contradictions between people’s beliefs and their behavior, between one set of beliefs or actions and another, between institutional goals and means within the society.

3.) Cultural relativity. Difference in culture also arise from the relativity of the standards that societies uphold and use for evaluating truth, right, propriety, virtue, morality, legality, beauty, and the means of adhering to these