What is Culture?

UAlberta International

4 Nov 202102:34

Summary

TLDRCulture is a multifaceted concept that shapes our identities, experiences, and interactions. It encompasses language, art, and social norms, influencing how we perceive the world and behave within it. It dictates the meaning behind gestures, expressions, and tones, and defines our values and biases. Culture is fluid, evolving through interactions with diverse perspectives. The University of Alberta encourages students to embrace this diversity, reflecting on their own cultural contributions to enrich the global conversation.

Takeaways

🌐 Culture encompasses national, regional, provincial, and community identities.
🎨 Culture manifests through artifacts such as language, art, fashion, food, stories, and literature.
🔍 Culture provides a framework for our perception and experience of the world.
🤔 Culture influences the meanings we assign to gestures, facial expressions, body language, and personal space.
🗣️ It shapes the connotations behind our tone of voice, volume of speech, and emotional responses to colors.
🤝 Culture defines social norms like respect, politeness, friendship, and teaching styles.
👥 It dictates our understanding of leadership and followership, and the roles we play in society.
⏰ Culture establishes societal timelines and acceptable reasons for actions.
🔑 It helps form our concepts of trust, responsibility, and the roles of parents and children at different ages.
📚 Culture shapes our moral compass, creating biases and expectations for what should or shouldn't happen.
🤷‍♂️ Culture is the underlying answer to many 'why' questions in human conditions.
💧 Culture is fluid and dynamic, changing as we interact with diverse cultural settings.
🌟 The University of Alberta promotes learning from diversity and encourages self-reflection on one's cultural contributions.

Q & A

What is the primary function of culture according to the script?
-Culture provides a framework for how we see and experience the world, dictating meaning into various aspects of life such as gestures, facial expressions, and personal space.
How does culture influence our understanding of respect and politeness?
-Culture defines what it looks like to be respectful or polite, shaping our concepts of these behaviors and how they should be exhibited.
In what ways does culture affect our perception of time and punctuality?
-Culture dictates what is considered too late and what reasons are acceptable for being late, influencing our understanding of time management and punctuality.
How does culture shape our expectations of roles and responsibilities in life?
-Culture helps define the roles that parents and children play and at what age certain responsibilities should set in.
What role does culture play in forming our moral compass?
-Culture helps shape our versions of right and wrong, creating our biases and expectations around what should and shouldn't happen in any given context.
How does culture influence our emotional responses to colors?
-Culture creates the connotation behind our experience and emotion of colors, affecting how we perceive and react to different hues.
What is the relationship between culture and the way we communicate through voice?
-Culture defines the connotation behind tones of voice, volumes of speech, and how these elements contribute to communication.
How can the concept of culture be both fluid and rigid?
-Culture is fluid in that it shifts, hardens, adopts, or rejects aspects as we interact with people from other cultural settings, but it can also be rigid in the sense that it provides a set of established norms and expectations.
What is the significance of cultural diversity at the University of Alberta?
-The diversity at the University of Alberta provides an opportunity for all to learn from each other, fostering an ongoing conversation and exchange of cultural perspectives.
How can one contribute to the cultural discourse at the University of Alberta?
-One can contribute by reflecting on their own cultural identity, the ways of knowing they commonly use, their expectations in certain situations, and how they are part of the cultural exchange.
What is the role of the University of Alberta International in this cultural conversation?
-The University of Alberta International welcomes and encourages the participation of all in the ongoing cultural conversation, looking forward to the contributions of each individual.

Outlines

00:00

🌏 The Essence of Culture

This paragraph delves into the multifaceted nature of culture, which encompasses not only national, regional, and community identities but also the artifacts of language, art, fashion, food, and literature that shape our experiences. It highlights how culture frames our perception of the world, influencing gestures, facial expressions, body language, and personal space. Furthermore, it touches on the deeper implications of culture, such as defining respect, politeness, friendship, and leadership, as well as shaping our moral compass and expectations in various contexts. The paragraph emphasizes that culture is not a static entity but a fluid concept that evolves through interactions with diverse cultural settings, particularly at the University of Alberta, where a rich tapestry of cultures converges, offering a dynamic learning environment.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Culture

Culture is a complex and multifaceted concept that encompasses the shared values, beliefs, customs, and behaviors of a group of people. In the video, it is described as more than just the artifacts like language, art, and food; it also shapes our perceptions and interactions with the world. Culture is portrayed as a fundamental aspect of human experience, influencing everything from personal space to our sense of right and wrong.

💡National Identity

National identity refers to the sense of belonging and affiliation one has with a particular nation or country. The script mentions that culture involves national, regional, and provincial identities, indicating how one's sense of self is tied to their cultural and geographical background. This concept is integral to understanding the diversity of cultural experiences.

💡Artifacts

In the context of the video, artifacts are the tangible products of culture, such as language, art, fashion, food, stories, and literature. These artifacts are what we can directly experience and are a means through which culture is expressed and transmitted.

💡Framing

Framing, as used in the video, refers to the cognitive structures that influence how we perceive and interpret information. Culture provides the 'framing' for our worldview, dictating how we make sense of our experiences and the world around us.

💡Gestures

Gestures are a form of non-verbal communication that can have different meanings across cultures. The video script notes that culture dictates the meaning behind gestures, facial expressions, and body language, highlighting the importance of understanding cultural context when interpreting these signals.

💡Personal Space

Personal space is the physical distance that individuals prefer to maintain between themselves and others. The script mentions that culture creates the connotation behind personal space, indicating that what is considered appropriate or comfortable can vary greatly among different cultural groups.

💡Connotation

Connotation refers to the implied or associated meaning of a word or symbol beyond its literal definition. In the video, it is used to describe how culture gives meaning to things like tones of voice and volumes of speech, suggesting that these elements carry deeper, culturally specific significance.

💡Respectful

Respectful is an adjective that describes behavior showing consideration for others. The video emphasizes that culture defines what it looks like to be respectful or polite, indicating that these behaviors are not universal but are instead learned and shaped by cultural norms.

💡Biases

Biases are preconceived opinions or preferences that can influence judgment. The script explains that culture helps shape our versions of right and wrong and creates our biases, suggesting that our cultural background can significantly impact our perspectives and attitudes.

💡Expectations

Expectations are beliefs about what will or should happen in a given situation. The video mentions that culture builds our expectations around what should and shouldn't happen, illustrating how cultural norms guide our anticipations and reactions to events.

💡Fluid

In the context of the video, 'fluid' describes the dynamic and changing nature of culture. It suggests that as we interact with people from different cultural backgrounds, our own cultural understanding shifts, adapts, and evolves, reflecting the ongoing process of cultural exchange and adaptation.

💡Diversity

Diversity refers to the variety of different cultures, beliefs, and experiences present within a group or society. The script highlights the importance of diversity, particularly in an educational setting like the University of Alberta, as a source of learning and growth through exposure to different cultural perspectives.

💡Discourse

Discourse, in this context, refers to a discussion or conversation on a particular topic. The video encourages individuals to contribute to the discourse on culture, emphasizing the importance of dialogue in understanding and appreciating cultural differences.

Highlights

Culture encompasses national, regional, provincial, and community identities.

Culture creates artifacts like language, art, fashion, food, stories, and literature that we can experience.

Culture provides a framework for how we perceive and interact with the world.

It influences our gestures, facial expressions, body language, and personal space.

Culture assigns meaning to tones of voice, speech volumes, and our emotional responses to colors.

It defines concepts of respect, politeness, friendship, student behavior, teaching styles, and leadership.

Culture determines social norms around timeliness, reasons, trust-building, and life roles.

It shapes our understanding of right and wrong and forms our biases and expectations.

Culture answers many 'why' questions about human conditions and behaviors.

No two people experience culture in exactly the same way throughout their lives.

Culture is fluid and changes through interactions with people from different cultural backgrounds.

The University of Alberta is a melting pot of diverse cultures where we can learn from each other.

Self-reflection on one's cultural identity and contributions to cultural discourse is encouraged.

The University of Alberta International welcomes students and looks forward to their contributions to ongoing conversations.

Culture underpins everything we experience in life.

Understanding one's own culture and ways of knowing is important for meaningful cultural exchange.

Expectations in defined situations and contributions to cultural discourse are key aspects of cultural identity.