Understanding Culture, Society, and Politics Midterm Exam Reviewer
Module 1: Nature, Goals, and Perspectives of Anthropology, Sociology, and Political Science
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Anthropology: The study of human societies, cultures, and their development over time.
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Sociology: The scientific study of society, including patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and culture.
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Political Science: The study of politics, government systems, and political behavior of individuals and societies.
Module 2: Concept of Society and Culture
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Meaning and Nature of Society: A group of individuals living together in a community and sharing common
interests and culture.
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Types of Societies by Gerhard Lenski:
(1) Pre-Industrial: Hunting and gathering societies, horticultural and pastoral societies,
(2) Industrial societies:
(3) Post-industrial:
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7 Characteristics of Culture:
1. Culture is social
2. Culture varies from society to society
3. Culture is shared
4. Culture is learned
5. Culture is transmitted among members of society
6. Culture is continuous and cumulative.
7. Culture is gratifying and idealistic
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Elements of Culture: Language, beliefs, values, norms, customs, traditions, and artifacts.
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Types of Norms: Proscriptive norm (what should not be done) and Prescriptive norm (what should be done).
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Forms of Norms: Folkways (informal norms), Mores (strongly held norms), and Laws (formal written norms).
Module 3: Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism
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Cultural Variation: Differences in cultural expression and practices among different societies.
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Cultural Universals: Common features found in all human cultures, such as language, family, and rituals.
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Variation between Cultures: Subculture (distinct cultural group within a larger culture), Counter Culture (opposes
the dominant culture), High Culture (cultural patterns of a society's elite), and Popular Culture (cultural patterns
widespread among a society's population).
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Ethnocentrism: Belief in the superiority of one's own culture.
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Cultural Relativism: Understanding other cultures in the context of their own values and beliefs.
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Cultural Change: The process through which cultures adapt and evolve over time.
Module 4: Human Biocultural Evolution
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Human Evolution by Charles Darwin: Theory of evolution by natural selection, explaining the process of species'
adaptation and survival.
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Australopithecus: Extinct genus of hominins, considered an early ancestor of humans.
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Homo Habilis: Early species of humans known for the use of stone tools.
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Homo Erectus: Extinct species of humans that lived during the Pleistocene epoch.
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Neanderthal: Extinct species of humans closely related to modern humans.
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Homo Sapiens: The species to which all modern human beings belong.
Review Tips:
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Understand the key concepts and definitions for each topic.
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Pay attention to the classifications and characteristics mentioned.
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Practice applying the concepts to real-life examples to enhance understanding.
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Use visual aids and diagrams to illustrate complex concepts such as cultural variations and human evolution.