What is Culture?
Culture is the collective term to identify certain ideas, customs, and social behaviors. It
represents a group of people or a society, combining their knowledge, beliefs, morals,
and laws.
For the most part, culture looks at the big picture. It’s a general term that represents
the whole. It includes everything from the food you eat to the TV shows you watch, as
well as art, language, fashion, dance, and more.
When you think of Japanese culture, for instance, certain foods, movie genres, dances,
art, and language likely come to mind. Culture is what brings an entire group of people
together. It not only represents what you do but also what you believe. It’s deep-rooted
into your personality and behavior, often resulting in shared morals and values. It’s a
shared sense of community identity.
In short, culture is everything a certain group of people has amassed throughout their
history. It’s a way of life that you learn through immersion as you experience it each and
every day.
What is Tradition?
Tradition, on the other hand, is a more specific term. It’s often used to describe an
individual event or practice, such as removing your shoes when entering your home.
Traditions are ideas and beliefs passed down from one generation to the next. They’re
not rules, but rather guidelines. Each family within a culture can have its own unique
traditions while sharing other common ones.
For example, each year on the 3rd March many Japanese families celebrate their
daughters, wishing them happiness and success. This is a shared tradition that goes
back many generations. It isn’t a law you must abide by, but most families celebrate it
because they consider it a part of their culture. Yet different families may celebrate it in
different ways. A tradition to go to a certain location, for instance, or to present a
specific gift.
In short, traditions present a link to the past. They allow you to honor your ancestors
and pay respect to certain aspects of your culture.
The Difference Between Culture and Tradition
The main difference between culture and tradition is that traditions describe a group’s
beliefs and behaviors that are passed down from one generation to another. Culture
describes the shared characteristics of the entire group, which has been amassed
throughout its history.
For example, the tradition to remove your shoes when entering a home in Japan is a
shared custom passed down from parent to child. It’s rooted in good manners, as is the
tradition of bowing to those you greet. These honor Japan’s greater culture, which
largely centers around showing respect.
Culture acts as the underlying thread that connects you to everyone else, with traditions
acting as the events and customs to honor these.
Comparison Table Between Tradition and Culture
Parameter of
Comparison
Tradition
Culture
By definition
Tradition is ideas and beliefs
which is passed from one
generation to another
generation.
Culture is a collective term
to identify ideas, behavior,
and customs.
Observation
Traditions are mostly unique
from one family to another.
culture is observed among a
group of people.
Sum Total
Tradition is a part of the
culture.
Culture is a total of
traditions.
Creation
Tradition is created by
individuals.
Culture is created by
society or a group of people
over a long time interval.
Audience
Ancestors, families,
forefathers.
Teenagers, religious
communities, and societies.
Tradition is the permanent
belief that is carried for
thousands of years.
Culture is flexible with
time, we can change and
adapt as per our wish.
Time Interval
Example
Passing property and valuable
treasury from grandparents to
the new generation from time
to time is a symbol of
traditional values.
In India, the removal of
shoes and sandals before
entering any religious place
is a symbol of cultural
values.
WHY IS CULTURAL DIVERSITY A “GOOD THING”?
Cultural diversity is important because our country, workplaces, and schools
increasingly consist of various cultural, racial, and ethnic groups. We can learn from one
another, but first, we must have a level of understanding about each other. Learning
about other cultures helps us understand different perspectives within the world in which
we live. It helps dispel negative stereotypes and personal biases about different groups.
In addition, cultural diversity helps us recognize and respect “ways of being” that are not
necessarily our own. So that as we interact with others we can build bridges to trust,
respect, and understanding across cultures. Furthermore, this diversity makes our
country a more interesting place to live in. As people from diverse cultures contribute
language skills, new ways of thinking, new knowledge, and different experiences.
Benefits Of Cultural Diversity
The world is naturally multicultural. Approaching cultural diversity with a mindset and
actions that embrace this fact leads to many benefits, like:
●
●
●
●
●
Compassion: Communication and understanding of differences leads to
increased compassion instead of judgment.
Innovation: Varied perspectives and lens of looking at the world lend to
innovative thinking.
Productivity: People who come together and bring their own style of working
together tend to support a more productive team.
New Opportunities: The diversity opens the door to new opportunities and the
blending of ideas which would otherwise have been homogeneous.
Problem-Solving: Challenges are layered, so having people with different
backgrounds can lead to better problem-solving with richness of opinions.
Globalization is also a way to learn and explore cultural differences and so much more.
Globalization gives us a chance to represent our culture in front of the whole world and
give all different societies a chance to explore our culture. Nowadays different people
from different societies live together in different cultures, so by seeing the surrounding
culture shown by that society it gives a chance for the migrants to adapt and adjust with
their culture and values as they can learn and explore what they are seeing in their
surroundings.
Cultural change can have many causes, including the environment, technological
inventions, and contact with other cultures. Cultures are externally affected via contact
between societies, which may also produce—or inhibit—social shifts and changes in
cultural practices. War or competition over resources may impact technological
development or social dynamics. Additionally, cultural ideas may transfer from
one society to another, through diffusion or acculturation.
Discovery and invention are mechanisms of social and cultural change. Discovery refers
to the finding of new knowledge within an existing realm. Generally, it relates to
discovering a new understanding of a particular behavior or ritual. Invention is the
creation of a new device or process. New discoveries often lead to new inventions by
people.
The Current Generation’s Responsibility
The young generation must grasp the value and need for cultural preservation. A
society is always respected, no matter how modest it is.
A person’s cultural heritage and identity should be something to be proud of. The
current generation certainly holds firmly on to the existing community. And move it on to
the next generation so that it can continue to flourish for many more generations.
Preserving cultural diversity helps not only those whose traditions we protect. But it also
preserves philosophies and ways of thinking about which we can learn. Furthermore,
living in a dynamic world makes life more interesting!
What Kinds of Culture Are There?
Political, economic, and social philosophies all impact the way people’s values are
shaped. Our cultural base of reference—formed by our education, religion, or social
structure—also impacts business interactions in critical ways. As we study cultures, it is
very important to remember that all cultures are constantly evolving. When we say
“cultural,” we don’t always just mean people from different countries. Every group of
people has its own unique culture—that is, its own way of thinking, values, beliefs, and
mind-sets. For our purposes in this chapter, we’ll focus on national and ethnic cultures,
although there are subcultures within a country or ethnic group.
Precisely where a culture begins and ends can be murky. Some cultures fall within
geographic boundaries; others, of course, overlap. Cultures within one border can turn
up within other geographic boundaries looking dramatically different or pretty much the
same. For example, Indians in India or Americans in the United States may
communicate and interact differently from their countrymen who have been living
outside their respective home countries for a few years.
The countries of the Indian subcontinent, for example, have close similarities. And
cultures within one political border can turn up within other political boundaries looking
pretty much the same, such as the Chinese culture in China and the overseas Chinese
culture in countries around the world. We often think that cultures are defined by the
country or nation, but that can be misleading because there are different cultural groups
(as depicted in the preceding figure). These groups include nationalities; subcultures
(gender, ethnicities, religions, generations, and even socioeconomic class); and
organizations, including the workplace.
Types of culture
Causes of Cultural Change
3 main ways that culture changes
1) Technology – is defined as the skills and tools people use. i.e. invention of wheel,
paved roads Inventions lead to demands of certain resources i.e. steel for cars
2) Changing Environment – people are influenced by their surroundings i.e. the Plains
Native Americans heavily relied on hunting Buffalo until settlers destroyed most of the
buffalo population to make farm land
3) New Ideas – People are now conserving resources more than ever such as recycling.
A new sense of the world has finite resources. Culture is adapted or borrowed to fit a
different cultures needs
Aspects of Culture