PSYC14H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Cultural Evolution, Evolution, Natural Selection
Document Summary
Cultures are not monolithic and frozen entities but rather are fluid and constantly evolving as new ideas emerge and conditions change. This chapter explores where this cultural variation comes from and how cultures change and persist over time. Ecological differences: different environments affect the way that people go about everyday life. There are some ways in which physical environments affect culture quite directly. In cultures where the environment is harsh and requires courage and physical prowess to secure a living may value strength and toughness of males and, therefore, they are more likely to emerge. Proximal causes: those that have direct and immediate relation with their effects. Distal causes: initial differences that lead to effects over long periods, often through indirect relations. Cultural norms can arise as direct responses to features of the ecology or they can arise because of learning from other individuals.
