Anthropology Terms - Acculturation & Ethnocentrism

 Aiden Cunningham

Mr. Roddy
IHSS
26 August 2021

IHSS Blog Anthropology Terms

For this assignment, I chose two terms, Acculturation and Ethnocentrism. Here’s a little about them and some examples.


  • Acculturation

Acculturation is the process of when a culture or society adopts the traditions and customs of another culture or society, simply because the two interact with each other. The culture or society that is adopting traditions and customs from the other culture or society typically isn’t being forced to do this, they are just doing it on their own. A good example of this is cultures who consist of traditions that they have held for thousands of years and are now starting to adopt things around them. A real world example of this is the people of China, who are now starting to adopt western clothing, instead of the traditional Chinese and Japanese cultural clothing they have worn for thousands of years.


  • Ethnocentrism

Ethnocentrism is the practice of viewing other cultures through the lens of your own culture. This means that you might find things that other cultures do strange or wrong, as the way you have done it in your culture is what you believe to be the best way to do it, or it is the only way you know of. A good example of this is also from the people of China, who for the longest time have used chopsticks to eat food. Ethnocentric people from China might view the Western way of using a fork, knife, and spoon as incorrect or strange, as using chopsticks is the only way they know, or simply the best way they know to consume food.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Marcel Mauss - blogger

  Claire Thacker  Mr. Roddy  IHSS  Date  Marcel Mauss Marcel Mauss was a sociologist and anthropologist. He was born May 10, 1972, and died February 10, 1950. One of his accomplishments is an original study of the relation between forms of exchange and social structure. Mauss’s views on the method/theory of ethnology are thought to have shaped the thoughts of many famous social scientists. His career started as a professor of primitive religion in 1902 at the École Pratique des Hautes Études in Paris. He also taught at College de France and established the ethnology institute of the University of Paris. Essai Sur le don , also known as The Gift,  is thought to be his most influential work. The Gift is an essay Mauss wrote about how human relationships are formed through the exchange of objects between groups. The Gift also talked about what part of giving a gift does it mean that you have to give something back. The answer according to Mauss in his writin...
Read more

The Tipping Point Sociology Blog

Wyatt Quillin  Mr. Roddy IHSS 27 September 2021 The Tipping Point     The tipping point is the point where something becomes immensely popular and spreads across a society. This something can be anything from a pair of shoes to a dance move to a hairstyle, and there are a couple of variables that are necessary to the success of the something. According to Malcolm Gladwell, the writer of the book The Tipping Point , the three components that determine whether something will reach its tipping point are the law of the few, the stickiness factor, and the power of context. The law of the few relies on the select people who are able to use their special social traits to help spread information and influence. Again according to Gladwell, the three types of people are the salesmen, mavens, and connectors. Salesmen are naturally very convincing and can easily persuade people. Connectors are very popular and connected to lots of different influential people. Connectors can easily s...
Read more

Sociology Reading Blog (The Culture of Fear)

 Ethan Zweig Mr. Roddy IHSS September 27, 2021 "The Culture of Fear"     "The Culture of Fear" was written in 1999 by Barry Glassner, who was a sociology professor at USC. The book explains who Americans are so engrossed with "fear of wrong things". Glassner examines and exposes the people who manipulate Americans perceptions profit from the often baseless anxieties they cultivate and encourage. Three out of four Americans say they feel more more fearful than they did a decade ago. Culture of fear is the concept that people incite fear in the general public to achieve political or workplace goals through emotional bias. Barry Glassner found out that no amount of debunking can wipeout fear. 
Read more