The values, norms, and material goods characteristic of a given group; one of the most distinctive properties of human kind

Abstract ideals held by individuals or groups about what is desirable, proper, good, and bad; these are strongly influenced by the specific culture in which they happen to live

Rules of conduct that specify appropriate behavior in a given range of social situations; it either prescribes a given type of behavior or forbids it- are backed up by sanctions varying from disapproval to physical punishment

The physical objects that a society creates, which influence the ways in which people live

A group of people who live in a particular territory, are subject to a common system of political authority, and are aware of having a distinct identity from other groups, can range from small to large

Sociology's recent emphasis on the importance of understanding the role of culture in daily life

An approach that attempts to explain the behavior of both animals and human beings in terms of biological principles

Debate that struggles to find whether we are shaped by our biology or if we are products of learning through life's experiences

Fixed patterns of behavior that have genetic origins and that appear in all normal animals within a given species

Values and norms distinct from those of the majority, held by a group within a wider society

The acceptance of a minority group by a majority population, in which the new group takes on the values and norms of the dominant culture

Ethnic groups exist separately and share equally in economic and political life. Calls for respecting cultural diversity and promoting equality of different cultures.

The tendency to look at other cultures through the eye's of one's own culture, and thereby misrepresenting them.

The practice of judging a society by its own standards.

Values of modes of behavior shared by all human cultures

The primary vehicle of meaning and communication in a society; this is a system of symbols that represent objects and abstract thoughts

Some societies permit this, in which an individual may have several spuses at the same time

A hypothesis, based on Sapir and Whorf, that perceptions are relative to the language- we are more likely to be aware of things if we have words for them

Any vehicle of meaning or communication

The study of the ways in which nonlinguistic phenomena can generate meaning- as in the example of a traphic light