![]() ![]() In Dublin, Ireland, bus riders would be expected to extend an arm to indicate that they want the bus to stop for them. ![]() But when boarding a bus in Cairo, Egypt, passengers might board while the bus is moving, because buses often do not come to a full stop to take on patrons. In many societies that enjoy public transportation, a passenger will find a marked bus stop or station, wait for the bus or train, pay an agent before or after boarding, and quietly take a seat if one is available. Whether people are commuting in Egypt, Ireland, India, Japan, and the U.S., many behaviors will be the same and may reveal patterns. Take the case of going to work on public transportation. And many interpretations of them.įigure 3.2 How would a visitor from a rural region act and feel on this crowded Hong Kong train? (Credit: Eric Chan/flickr) But even an action as seemingly simple as commuting to work evidences a great deal of cultural propriety, that is, there are a lot of expected behaviors. Most people want to live their daily lives confident that their behaviors will not be challenged or disrupted. Americans may laugh at a scene in which an actor falls in other cultures, falling is never funny. Humor is common to all societies, but what makes something funny is not. ![]() Knowing unwritten rules is also fundamental in understanding humor in different cultures. Knowing to look left instead of right for oncoming traffic while crossing the street can help avoid serious injury and even death. But many people from cultures where marriages are arranged, which includes a number of highly populated and modern countries, often prefer the approach because it reduces stress and increases stability (Jankowiak 2021).īeing familiar with unwritten rules helps people feel secure and at ease. To people who are not from such a culture, arranged marriages may seem to have risks of incompatibility or the absence of romantic love. In Papua New Guinea, almost 30 percent of women marry before the age of 18, and 8 percent of men have more than one wife (National Statistical Office, 2019). In other nations and in other times, marriages have been arranged through an intricate process of interviews and negotiations between entire families. In the U.S., marriage is generally seen as an individual choice made by two adults, based on mutual feelings of love. Living together, people formed common habits and behaviors, from specific methods of childrearing to preferred techniques for obtaining food.Īlmost every human behavior, from shopping to marriage, is learned. According to Smithsonian Institution research, humans have been forming groups for almost 3 million years in order to survive. Compare and contrast ethnocentrism and xenocentrism.Discuss the concept of cultural universals as it relates to society.Explain material versus nonmaterial culture.Differentiate between culture and society.By the end of this section, you should be able to: ![]()
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