What are the six characteristics of culture?

Class is a social category based on people’s economic position in society. Not all societies exhibit class differences; ones who do not are called egalitarian. Class societies are hierarchical, with one class having more access to resources than others. Class is a recent feature of culture, as all early humans lived in egalitarian bands or tribes.

·       Race (in a cultural sense) is the socially constructed meanings assigned to the perceived differences between people based on physical traits (skin color, facial features, hair types). What differences we recognize and the meanings we assign those differences are all culturally determined and not biologically created. These physical features do not determine a person’s actions or explain their behavior.

·       Ethnic group refers to people who identify themselves as a distinct group based on cultural features such as common origins, language, customs and beliefs. Ethnic groups can be historically constituted (a group of people who shared a territory, language or religion) or they can be more recently claimed (African Americans). Just because people choose to see themselves as members of a specific ethnic group doesn’t mean that all members of that group are the same or share beliefs and values. Ethnicity, because it is a marker of group membership, can be used to discriminate.

·       Indigenous peoples, “are groups who have a long-standing connection with some territory that predates colonial or outside societies prevailing in the territory.” Indigenous peoples are groups that were in a territory before Europeans or colonists arrived, thus Native Americans are an indigenous group. They are frequently called First Peoples, and often suffer from discrimination.

·       Gender refers to the cultural meanings assigned to the biological differences between the sexes. Most societies only have masculine or feminine cultural roles, but some have a third, or even a blended, gender. Gender roles vary widely cross-culturally. Closely tied to gender roles are issues relating to homosexuality. In many cultures around the world, there is discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation.

·       Age is both a biological fact as well as being culturally constructed. While we can reckon how many years old an individual is (biological age), what that means in terms of rights and responsibilities is culturally constructed. Most societies have obligations and responsibilities that are assigned based on individuals reaching specific ages. Think of driving, drinking, and voting.

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