INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOCULUTRAL ANTHROPOLOGY LECTURE NOTES 11 January 2007 Anthropology from the Greek anthropos (meaning &quot;man&quot;, &quot;human&quot;) and logos (meaning &quot;study&quot;) Anthropology is distinguished from the other social sciences by: Its <a href="/keyword/holistic-approach/" >holistic approach</a> Its emphasis on culture Its strategy of cross-cultural comparison Its reliance on long-term fieldwork and participant observation Its production of ethnographies based on research using the ethnographic method Its commitment to cultural relativism Anthropology has traditional been divided into four fields, which have now been <a href="/keyword/further-subdivided/" >further subdivided</a> into many subfields. The four fields are: Physical (biological) anthropology Archaeology Linguistic anthropology Sociocultural anthropology Applied anthropology crosscuts these four fields Most anthropologists also specialize in a culture area, although many now specialize in a particular type of society instead. Anthropology has traditionally distinguished between culture and society but that distinction is no longer as useful as it once was. Today many anthropologists conceptualize their field of study in terms of sociocultural systems. Culture E.B. Tylor (1871): &quot;Culture .... is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, arts, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.&quot; In other words, culture is that set of learned behaviors, beliefs, attitudes, values and ideals that are characteristic of a particular society or culture. Society the patterned relationships among people living within a particular territory. Sociocultural system incorporates both society and culture. Culture is shared but that does not preclude: Individual variation Sub-cultural variation Culture is learned. Enculturation the process of social interaction through which individuals learn their culture. Symbolic learning based on our linguistic capacity, it is what distinguishes human culture from the most sophisticated behavior of other animals. o Symbols arbitrary units of meaning. o Signs units of meaning directly associated with concrete physical items or activities. 1 Anthropologists sometimes distinguish between material culture and non-material culture. Material culture the physical products of human society or behavior. Non-material culture intangible products of human society like: o Values o Beliefs o Norms o Worldview o Ideology o Folkways o Mores Culture and the environment: Culture is generally adaptive. Culture is mostly integrated. Culture is always changing. Culture is also personal: Ethnocentrism the process of judging another society by the values and standards of your own, which can take the form of ethnic chauvinism. Culture shock the psychological reaction to having to adjust to a culture different than your own. What people say they do (ideal culture) does not always coincide with what they actually do (real culture). 2