Society and Culture

By Thea Wylie

Society

• Refers to the way people organise themselves. The variety of groups, networks institutions, organisations and systems that people use to link themselves with others to form a society.

Culture

• Generally, refers to the values, arts, technology, laws and beliefs that bind a society together. These ways of thinking, feeling and behaving are connected to the shared knowledge of a society.

Persons

• This refers to individuals who are shaped by their society and culture. All people are an example of people interacting in society.

Environment

• This can refer to the physical setting of a society, but you will also learn about other types of environments such as the social and psychological environment.

Time

• Is a constant in all societies and cultures. We choose to measure it in terms of past, present and future.

Power

• The easiest way to understand power is to think about what it is that allows people to bring others to do things they may not normally do.

Authority

• This is often confused with power, and can actually be thought of as a subtype of power.

Gender

• This concept refers to the socially constructed differences between men and women it may mean that a society accepts males as tough and boisterous, while females are accepted as sensitive and shy.

Technology

• Simply put, technology means the tools that make tasks easier, enhancing the natural ability of persons to perform those tasks.