cultural theory

Examples of cultural theory in the following topics:

• Sources of Social Change

  • Some of the better-known approaches include deprivation theory, mass-society theory, structural-strain theory, resource-mobilization theory, political process theory and culture theory.
  • This particular section will thus pay attention to structural-strain theory and culture theory, while mass-society theory and political process theory will be discussed in greater detail later in "International Sources of Social Change" and "External Sources of Social Change," respectively.
  • First, it emphasizes the importance of movement culture.
  • In emphasizing the injustice frame, culture theory also addresses the free-rider problem.
  • Analyze the similarities and differences in the various social movement theories - deprivation, mass-society, structural-strain, resource-mobilization, political process and culture

• Cultural Lag

  • Cultural lag can occur when technological innovation outpaces cultural adaptation.
  • Cultural lag is not only a concept, as it also relates to a theory and explanation in sociology.
  • His theory of cultural lag suggests that a period of maladjustment occurs when the non-material culture is struggling to adapt to new material conditions.
  • But these changes in the non-material culture do not match exactly with the change in the material culture.
  • This delay is the cultural lag.

• Theories of Culture

  • This model is of particular use in understanding the role of culture in sociological research because it presents two axes for understanding culture: one ranging from objective (society) to subjective (culture and cultural interpretation); the other ranging from the macro-level (norms) to the micro-level (individual level beliefs).
  • If used for understanding a specific cultural phenomenon, like the displaying of abstract art, this model depicts how cultural norms can influence individual behavior.
  • Culture can also be seen to play a specific function in social life.
  • According to Griswold, "The sociological analysis of culture begins at the premise that culture provides orientation, wards off chaos, and directs behavior toward certain lines of action and away from others. " Griswold reiterates this point by explaining that, "Groups and societies need collective representations of themselves to inspire sentiments of unity and mutual support, and culture fulfills this need. " In other words, culture can have a certain utilitarian function – the maintenance of order as the result of shared understandings and meanings.
  • On the other hand, culture can also function to create and sustain social inequalities.

• High and Low Culture

  • Popular culture studies is the academic discipline studying popular culture from a critical theory perspective.
  • High culture most commonly refers to the set of cultural products, mainly in the arts, held in the highest esteem by a culture.
  • High culture became an important concept in political theory on nationalism for writers such as Ernest Renan and Ernest Gellner , who saw it as a necessary component of a healthy national identity.
  • Gellner's concept of a high culture extended beyond the arts; he used it to distinguish between different cultures (rather than within a culture), contrasting high cultures with simpler, agrarian low cultures.
  • Discuss the roles of both high culture and popular culture within society

• External Sources of Social Change

  • There are many theories of social change.
  • Political Process Theory, sometimes also known as the Political Opportunity Theory,is an approach to social movements heavily influenced by political sociology.
  • The theory, argues that all three of these components are important for the successful creation of a movement.
  • Critics of the political process theory and resource-mobilization theory point out that neither theory discusses the culture of movements to any great degree.
  • This has presented culture theorists an opportunity to expound on the importance of culture.

• Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology

  • Sociological theory is developed at multiple levels, ranging from grand theory to highly contextualized and specific micro-range theories.
  • Putnam's theory proposes:
  • This element of Putnam's theory clearly illustrates the basic purpose of sociological theory.
  • In short, Putnam's theory clearly encapsulates the key ideas of a sociological theory.
  • The theoretical perspectives in sociology use both micro- and macro-perspectives to understand sociological and cultural phenomenon.

• Strain Theory: How Social Values Produce Deviance

  • Strain theory states that social structures within society may pressure citizens to commit crimes.
  • For instance, individuals in the U.S. who sell illegal drugs have rejected the culturally acceptable means of making money, but still share the widely accepted cultural value in the U.S. of making money.
  • Social strain theory was developed by famed American sociologist Robert K.
  • The theory states that social structures may pressure citizens to commit crimes .
  • In this sense, according social strain theory, social values actually produce deviance in two ways.

• Animals and Culture

  • Animal culture refers to cultural learning in non-human animals through socially transmitted behaviors.
  • Animal culture refers to cultural learning in non-human animals through socially transmitted behaviors.
  • The question of the existence of culture in non-human societies has been a contentious subject for decades due to the inexistence of a concise definition for culture.
  • One of the first signs of culture in early humans was the use of tools.
  • Charles Darwin first attempted to find the existence of imitation in animals when trying to prove his theory that the human mind had evolved from that of lower beings.

• Sociological Theories of Deviance

  • For instance, individuals in the U.S. who sell illegal drugs have rejected the culturally acceptable means of making money, but they still share the widely accepted cultural value of making money.
  • Four main sociological theories of deviance exist.
  • For instance, individuals in the U.S. who sell illegal drugs have rejected the culturally acceptable means of making money, but they still share the widely accepted cultural value of making money.
  • The third main sociological theory of deviance is conflict theory.
  • The fourth main sociological theory of deviance is labeling theory.

• Integration Theory

  • Recently, some sociologists have been taking a different approach to sociological theory by employing an integrationist approach - combining micro- and macro-level theories to provide a comprehensive understanding of human social behavior (while these studies rarely cite Symbolic Interaction Theory, most of their models are based heavily upon Herbert Blumer's initial elaboration of Symbolic Interaction in relation to social institutions).
  • This model is of particular use in understanding society because it uses two axes: one ranging from objective (society) to subjective (culture and cultural interpretation); the other ranging from the macro-level (norms) to the micro-level (individual level beliefs).
  • If used for understanding a specific cultural phenomenon, like the displaying of abstract art in one's home, the integration model depicts the different influences on the decision.
  • For instance, the model depicts that cultural norms can influence individual behavior.
  • The model also shows that individual level values, beliefs, and behaviors influence macro-level culture.