4.4: What is Culture?
Activity 4.4: What is Culture?
Culture is a learned pattern of customs, beliefs and behaviors, socially acquired and socially transmitted through symbols and widely shared meanings. Culture can be defined as an organized group of learned responses and ready-made solutions to problems people face and how to live day-to-day.
Culture is not only bound by race and ethnicity. Groups of people who work in certain fields may develop a unique culture. They have a unique language, practice model, etc. Culture defines how we do things, think about things and talk about things.
There are many analogies that help us understand culture. One is that culture is like an iceberg: There are parts we can see and parts we can’t see but know are there. The part above the waterline makes up only about 10 percent of an iceberg’s entirety. The visible parts of culture might include dress, music, food and games. Those that we can’t see but know are there include unwritten rules guiding patterns of speech, concepts of time and the meanings of body language.
Review the iceberg image below. Choose one component found below the waterline of the culture iceberg and explain an unseen rule from the perspective of your culture. While several of your classmates may come from the same culture, there is a good chance that each person will see slight variations in their culture’s rules, expectations, or customs.
