what is culture and why does it matter broadly construed culture refers to a set of beliefs practices and symbols that are learned and shared together these beliefs practices and symbols form an all-encompassing integrated whole that binds people to together and shapes the worldview and lifeways to say that a group of people shares a culture does not necessarily mean all individuals think or act in identical ways this is because one's beliefs and practices can vary within a culture depending on age gender social status and other characteristics but of course members of a culture share many things in common and while we are not born with a particular culture we are born with the capacity to learn any culture in fact through the process of inculture ation we learn to become members of our group both directly through instruction from our parents and peers and indirectly by observing and imitating those around us it must be noted that culture constantly changes in response to both internal and external factors some parts of culture change more quickly than others for instance in dominant American culture technology changes rapidly while deep-seated Val values such as individualism freedom and self-determination change very little over time yet inevitably when one part of culture changes so do other parts this is because nearly all parts of a culture are integrated and interrelated in the definition above belief refers not just to what we believe to be right or wrong true or false belief also refers to all the mental aspects of culture including values Norms philosophies worldview knowledge and so forth practices on the other hand refers to behaviors and actions that may be motivated by belief or performed without reflection as part of everyday routines much like art and language culture is also symbolic a symbol is something that stands for something else often without a natural connection individual create interpret and share the meanings of symbols within their group or the larger society for example in the United States everyone recognizes a red octagonal sign as signifying stop in other cases groups within American society interpret the same symbol in different ways consider for instance the Confederate flag as is well known some people see it as a symbol of pride in a Heritage but many others see it as a symbol of the long Legacy of slavery segregation and racial oppression thus displaying the Confederate flag could have positive or more often negative connotations indeed cultural symbols powerfully convey either shared or conflicting meanings across space and time it is interesting to note that this definition of culture that is shared learned beliefs practices and symbols allows us to understand that people everywhere are thinkers and actors shaped by their social contexts for sure these contexts are incredibly diverse comprising the human cultural diversity that Drew many of us to become anthropologists in the first place while culture is Central to making us human we are still biological beings with natural needs and urges that we share with other animals such as hunger thirst sex and elimination human culture uniquely channels these urges in particular ways and cultural practices can then impact our biology growth and development indeed humans are one of the most dynamic species on Earth in fact our ability to change both culturally and biologically has enabled us to persist for millions of years and to thrive in diverse environments now why does culture matter especially to the sociologists and anthropologists culture is important to the anthropologists and sociologists because it plays an important role in the production of social order when we say social order we mean the stability of society based on the Collective Agreement to rules and Norms that allow us to cooperate function as a society and live together ideally in peace and Harmony in fact for the French soci ologist Emil durkheim both material and non-material aspects of culture are valuable in that they hold Society together the values beliefs morals communication and practices that we share in common provide us with a shared sense of purpose and a valuable Collective identity durkheim revealed through his research that when people come together to participate in rituals they reaffirm the culture they hold in common and in doing so strengthen the social t eyes that bind them together today sociologists and anthropologists see this important social phenomenon happening not only in religious rituals and celebrations like weddings and the Indian Festival of Holi but also in secular ones such as high school dances and widely attended televised sporting events for example the Super Bowl and March Madness in relative parlance the famous German social theorist and activist KL mark introduces the critical approach to culture in the social sciences according to Marx it is in the realm of non-material culture that a minority is able to maintain unjust power over the majority he reasoned that subscribing to mainstream values norms and beliefs keep people invested in unequal social systems that do not work in their best interests but rather benefit the powerful minority sociologists and anthropologists today see Marx's Theory and action in the way that most people in capitalist societies buy into the belief that success comes from hard work and dedication and that anyone can live a good life if they do these things despite the reality that a job which pays a living wage is increasingly hard to come by as we can see both theorists were right about the role that culture plays in society but neither was exclusively right culture can be a force for oppression and mination but it can also be a force for creativity resistance and Liberation it is also a deeply important aspect of human social life and social organization without it we would not have relationships or Society in addition to what has just been mentioned culture is important because it is reflection of a community or Nation this makes culture a vital and important determining factor of how the Community reacts responds and grows culture gives us a sense of belonging especially when everyone speaks the same language culture also provides stability that in turn gives us a feeling of security and safety for most people culture provides them with the same emotional response as they have for their family in fact strangers have an instant connection when they learn that they are part of the same culture culture and lastly culture help shapes personalities influenced by the Norms or rules laid out by our culture we act in accordance with them hence our culture defines people's expectations from us in the attempt to fulfill them we shape our behavior and personality to suit our culture our religion Traditions Customs all a part of our culture play a major role in shaping our personalities indeed the way we perceive a situation and react to it depends largely on what we have learned from the environment and the way we have been brought up