 Cultural
Diversity refers to the wide
range of cultural differences (symbols,
values, language, norms) found between
and within nations.
 Variation
may be the result of natural
circumstances (climate, geography) or
social circumstances (level of technology
and composition of population).
1.
Examine the readings describing unique
cultural practices around the world.
2.
Then as a group we will discuss the
following:
a. Identify the cultural component.
b. Describe its role in the culture. How does it shape peoples
behaviour?
c. How does this cultural component make the culture
different from our Canadian cultural experiences?
 Homogenous
societies – people share a
common culture and are from similar
social, religious, political and economic
backgrounds.
• Ex Sweden
 Heterogeneous
societies – people are
dissimilar in regard to social
characteristics such as nationality, race,
ethnicity, class, occupation, education.
• Ex. Canada

Immigration contributes to diversity in a
society
 Over
the past 150 years, more than 13
million (legal) immigrants have come to
Canada (see fig 3.1, page 84)
 Canada
has become a complex and
diverse society and has produced
subcultures
 Complete “Canadian
Subcultures”
reading and questions
 Hutterites and Skinheads
 Culture
Shock is the disorientation that
people feel when they encounter cultures
radically different from their own
 Read
 Has
about the Yanamamo tribe (pg 87)
anyone else experienced culture
shock?
 Ethnocentrism
is the tendency to regard
one’s own culture and group as the
standard, and thus superior, whereas all
other groups are seen as inferior.
• Driving on the left side of the road in England is the “wrong side”
of the road and driving on the right side in Canada is the “correct”
side of the road.
• A Westerner thinking that using chopsticks at every meal to eat is
strange, silly, or a "stupid" way to eat
A Canadian making jokes about the Korean practice of eating
dogs.
• One of the most well known and the most horrible examples of
ethnocentrism to ever occur was during Nazi Germany. Adolf Hitler
decided that he hated Jews, as well as some other groups of
people, and had many innocent people slaughtered in
concentration camps. They did not deserve the torture that they
received, and this was clearly an extreme case of ethnocentrism.
Please
complete the Ethnocentrism
Activity that you are being given!
Use the internet to find your second
example.


Cultural Relativism is the belief that the behaviours
and customs of any culture must be viewed and
analyzed by the culture’s own standards
Examples:
• In India, cattle are viewed as sacred and are not eaten. In India there is also
widespread hunger. From an ethnocentric viewpoint, we would conclude that
cow worship is the cause of hunger and poverty in India. However, the Hindu
taboo against killing cattle is very important to their economic system. Live
cows are more valuable than dead ones because they have more important
uses than as a direct source of food. As part of the ecological system, cows
consume grass of little value to humans. Then they produce two very valuable
resources – oxen (the neutered offspring of the cows)to power the plows and
manure (for fuel and fertilizer) as well as milk.
Culture should be viewed from the standpoint of those
who live in a particular society.
 It
may be used to excuse customs and
behaviour (such as cannibalism) that may
violate human rights.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pmvt
bnXBoCQ

Cultural Diffusion – is the transmission of
cultural items or social practices from one group
or society to another.
Non-material examples brought into Canada/US

The Spanish Bull Run Comes to Virginia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByZZtXOQ2lY

The traditional HAKA Dance
•
•

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-lrE2JcO44)
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHW1K2LeQXE&feature=related)
Material examples
•
•
•
piñatas
tea
cuisine
 It
is attributed to three factors,
transportation, technology, and better
education.
 Because
all three of those things are on the
rise, cultures diffuse more and more each
day.
 Cultural
diffusion can be separated into six
groups, Social, Political, Religious,
Intellectual, Technological, and Economic.

This picture shows
MacDonald's in Saudi Arabia


MacDonald's is an
American restaurant that
has expanded to have
locations in 119
countries.
There are similar
examples of this cultural
diffusion in Canada,
where it is easy to find
ethnic restaurants that
serve foreign food.

This picture shows several
world leaders gathered
together


Because of the
technology and
transportation advances
in recent decades, world
leaders are able to meet
more often
United Nations
Conferences, G8, World
Trade Organization, etc.

This picture shows American
Muslims.



Many years ago, Islam was
almost exclusively found in
Africa and the Middle East.
However, through cultural
diffusion, Muslims are now
found everywhere in the
world, including North and
South America, Asia, and
Europe.
Because of advances in
transportation and education,
Muslims are able to live
wherever they want.

This graph shows the rising
literacy rates of Pakistan
over the last several
decades.



Literacy is on the rise in
developing countries
because of cultural
diffusion.
The education systems of
developed countries are
starting to transfer to
developing countries,
resulting in higher literacy
rates.
Without cultural diffusion, it
is unlikely that we would
see this same rise in
literacy.

This picture shows Kygryz
herders taking pictures with their
cell phones.



The Kygryz people live in the
mountains of northeast
Afghanistan, and are completely
isolated from the rest of the
world.
However, the Kygryz herders do
use cellphones to take pictures
and play music (they are useless
for communication because
cellular service doesn't reach
them).
This is an example of cultural
diffusion through technology,
because this picture shows that
even the most isolated people in
the world still use cellphones.

This map of international
trading blocs



Today's transportation means
that it is not uncommon for
products to be manufactured
in many faraway countries.
For instance, the shirt you are
wearing was probably not
manufactured in Canada, but
somewhere in Asia.
Because it is now common to
use products that were
manufactured all over the
world, economics are very
heavily affected by cultural
diffusion.
Read ”Cultural Diffusion or Cultural Confusion” handout.
Viewpoint: Saudi Women should not drive
•
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15123076
 Cultures
 For
do not remain static
example: the evolution of technology
has changed the material culture of
society
 When
change occurs in the material
culture of society, nonmaterial must adapt
 Frequently
this rate of change is uneven,
resulting in a gap.
 This disparity is referred to as cultural
lag – a gap between the technical
development of a society and its moral
and legal institutions

The PC (material) and electronic coding have made it
possible to create a unique health identifier for each
person in Canada. It is possible to create a national
data bank that includes everybody's medical records
from birth to death. Using this identifier, health
providers and insurance companies could rapidly
transfer medical records around the globe and
researchers could access unlimited data on people’s
disease, test results and treatment. However, the
availability of technology does not mean that it will be
accepted by people who believe (non-material) that
such a national bank would constitute invasion of
privacy and could be easily abused by others.