Photo by Matt Cramblett is licensed CC-BY on UnsplashCulture commonly refers to patterns of learned and shared behavior that are cumulative and transmitted across generations. Humans use culture to adapt and transform our world, but many scientists have provided examples of animals that learn, share, and transmit adaptations across generations. This raises important questions about whether human culture differs from animal culture and, if so, how.

2.1 The Origins of Culture

The Origins of Culture

In the 20th century, culture emerged as a central concept in anthropology, encompassing the range of human phenomena that cannot be attributed to genetic inheritance. Specifically, the term “culture” in American anthropology had two meanings:

1. The evolved human capacity to classify and represent experiences with symbols and to act imaginatively and creatively and
2. The distinct ways that people living in different parts of the world acted creatively and classified or represented their experiences.

Distinctions are currently made between the physical artifacts created by a society, its so-called material culture, and everything else, including the intangibles such as language, customs, etc., that are the primary referent of the term “culture.”

The origin of language is understood as the human capacity for complex symbolic communication, and the origin of complex culture is often thought to stem from the same evolutionary process in early man. Evolutionary anthropologist Robin I. Dunbar has proposed that language evolved as early humans began to live in large communities that required complex communication to maintain social coherence. Language and culture emerged as a means of using symbols to construct social identity and maintain coherence within a social group too large to rely exclusively on pre-human ways of building community (for example, grooming).

However, languages, now understood as the particular set of speech norms of a specific community, are also a part of the larger culture of the community that speaks them. Humans use language to signal identity with one cultural group and difference from others. Even among speakers of one language, several different ways of using the language exist, and each is used to signal affiliation with particular subgroups within a larger culture.

Anthropologists rejected the idea that culture was unique to Western society and adopted a new definition of culture that applied to all societies, literate and non-literate, settled and nomadic.

Animals and Culture

Animal culture refers to cultural learning in non-human animals through socially transmitted behaviors. The existence of culture in non-human societies has been a contentious subject for decades due to the non-existence of a concise definition of culture. However, many scientists agree that culture is defined as a process rather than an end product. Most agree that this process involves the social transmission of novel behavior, both among peers and between generations. A group of animals shares this behavior, but not necessarily between separate groups of the same species.

Though the idea of culture in animals has only been around for just over half a century, scientists have been noting the social behaviors of animals for centuries. Aristotle was the first to provide evidence of social learning in bird song. Charles Darwin first attempted to find the existence of imitation in animals when trying to prove his theory that the human mind had evolved from that of lower beings. Darwin was also the first to suggest what became known as ‘social learning’ in explaining the transmission of an adaptive behavior pattern throughout a population of honey bees.

One of the first signs of culture in early humans was the use of tools. Chimpanzees have been observed using tools such as rocks and sticks to obtain better access to food. Other learned activities have been exhibited by animals as well. Some examples of these activities that varied animals have shown are opening oysters, swimming, washing food, and unsealing tin lids. The acquisition and sharing of behaviors correlate directly to the existence of memes, which are defined as “units of cultural transmission” by the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins. It especially reinforces the natural selection component. These learned actions are mechanisms for making life easier and, therefore, longer.

Much cultural anthropological research has been done on non-human primates due to their close evolutionary proximity to humans. In non-primate animals, research tends to be limited, so the evidence for culture is lacking. The subject has become more popular recently, prompting more research in the field.

Like Humans, Chimps Learn Behavior From One Another (YouTube)

Cultural Diffusion, Stimulus Diffusion, and Mechanisms of Cultural Change

Culture is inherently dynamic, shaped by forces of continuity and transformation. One key driver of cultural evolution is cultural diffusion, the spread of cultural elements—such as objects, practices, ideas, and values—from one society to another. This process often occurs through migration, trade, media, globalization, or even conquest. While the form of an adopted cultural element may remain recognizable, its meaning often evolves in the context of the adopting society, illustrating the adaptability of culture.

For instance, the hamburger, a ubiquitous fast-food item in the United States, became an exotic novelty when introduced to China. Although its basic form—consisting of bread, meat, and condiments—remained the same, its cultural significance shifted. In China, hamburgers have been associated with Western lifestyles and are often consumed in contexts reflecting novelty or status rather than as mundane fast food. This example highlights how the form of a cultural element can traverse borders while its meaning undergoes reinterpretation to align with local contexts.

Beyond tangible objects, stimulus diffusion involves spreading ideas or innovations across cultures. Unlike direct copying, this process inspires the creation of something new in the receiving culture, influenced by but not identical to the original idea. For instance, the ancient Chinese invention of paper inspired the development of unique paper-making methods in other societies, each adapted to their specific needs and resources. Similarly, the concept of democracy, first developed in ancient Greece, has influenced diverse forms of governance worldwide, each tailored to local histories, traditions, and social structures.

A striking example of stimulus diffusion can also be seen in agricultural innovations. The Inca civilization of Peru developed terraced farming to maximize agricultural productivity in the challenging Andean environment. While the exact terracing techniques were not replicated elsewhere, the broader idea of adapting farming practices to local ecosystems has influenced modern sustainable agriculture globally. Similarly, the Chinese invention of movable type inspired Gutenberg’s printing press in Europe. Although vastly different in design and function, the core idea catalyzed a transformative leap in communication and information dissemination.

Mechanisms of Cultural Change

Old architecture and cultural styles have changed to more modern designs.

Cultural diffusion and stimulus diffusion are parts of a broader cultural change framework, which encompasses how societies adapt to shifts in their natural or social environments. Central to this process is cultural adaptation—the human capacity to modify cultural practices, technologies, and structures in response to changing conditions. Depending on the scale of environmental or societal change, cultural adaptation can range from slight adjustments in livelihood systems to sweeping transformations of entire cultural systems.

For example, minor habitat changes might prompt food procurement, housing, or clothing adjustments. In contrast, more drastic changes—such as prolonged drought or urbanization—may necessitate entirely new ways of living. For instance, the Inuit peoples of the Arctic have long adapted their cultural practices to the harsh conditions of their environment, from clothing made of animal hides to innovative forms of transportation like the kayak.

Internal forces, such as innovation, and external forces, such as contact with other societies, drive cultural change. However, cultures also resist change, often due to deeply ingrained habits, religious beliefs, or the interdependence of cultural traits. For instance, complementary roles for men and women in many traditional societies can lead to resistance when one group advocates for change. The women’s movement in the 20th century in Western cultures is an example of this dynamic, where the push for gender equality met with resistance, often from those benefiting from existing power imbalances.

Key mechanisms of cultural change include discovery and invention. Discovery refers to finding new knowledge within an existing realm, such as understanding an established ritual or behavior. Invention, on the other hand, involves creating new devices, processes, or practices. For instance, the discovery of penicillin revolutionized medicine, while the invention of the internet transformed communication and information access. These mechanisms often intertwine as discoveries inspire further inventions.

Acculturation and the Challenges of Cultural Exchange

Cultural change can also arise through acculturation, a process in which the traits of one culture are replaced or heavily influenced by those of another. This phenomenon often occurs in the context of colonization, migration, or prolonged contact between societies. Many Native American tribes, for instance, experienced significant cultural loss as European settlers imposed their languages, religions, and lifestyles. Related individual processes include assimilation, where an individual adopts another group’s culture, and transculturation, which involves a more reciprocal exchange of cultural traits.

Immigration and Assimilation (YouTube)

While cultural exchange fosters innovation and connectivity, it can also lead to misunderstandings, cultural appropriation, or the erosion of traditional practices. For example, the global spread of yoga has brought widespread appreciation for its health benefits and sparked debates over its commercialization and the dilution of its spiritual roots.

Ultimately, the mechanisms of cultural diffusion, adaptation, and change highlight the complex interplay of forces shaping human societies. By understanding these processes, we can better appreciate the interconnectedness of cultures while fostering respect for their diversity and resilience.

Humans and Culture

Although research on cultural learning has provided examples of certain non-human animal species that learn, share, and transmit adaptations across generations, this lesson focuses on three key areas that shape the uniqueness of human culture as it relates to psychology. The three areas include:

• cognition
• cooperation
• cumulative cultural learning

Cognition

In this lesson, the concepts related to cognition will be limited. Concepts of cognition will be covered later in the text. Cognition is the mental process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses. It has been argued that cognitive abilities like learning, attending, and memory underlie both human and cultural evolution (Heine, 2016; Henrich, 2016; Tomasello, 1999) because these abilities make humans better at social learning, which leads to social and cultural learning. Social learning is best described as learning that occurs in the presence of another person (Heine, 2016; Tomasello & Rakoczy, 2003).

The cultural intelligence hypothesis assumes that social learning is more efficient than individual or independent exploration and learning and that individuals tend to rely on social learning to acquire skills rather than independent learning. Heine (2016) and Tomasello & Rakoczy (2003) suggest there are two primary forms of social learning: imitative and emulative learning.

Imitative Learning

Imitative learning is considered uniquely human (Tomasello & Rakoczy, 2003) and occurs through modeling and demonstrating behavior with an understanding of the goal of the behavior. Imitative learning includes intention and reflection on the behaviors, as well as an understanding of the perspective of the person who is performing the behavior. Humans also imitate behavior to fit in and not just to learn, which has yet to be observed in other nonhuman primates (Tomasello & Carpenter, 2007).  Tomasello (2016) revised this cultural learning theory based on new research that found children do not simply imitate how to do things; they also copy exactly what others do, even if some actions seem unnecessary. They do so to fit in with their group. This finding demonstrates that learning is also about identity and social connection, not just solving problems. Tomasello (2016) also found that children learn not just how to do things, but how things are supposed to be done in their culture. They even enforce rules on others, like telling someone they’re doing something “the wrong way,” even if it doesn’t affect them personally. Additionally, children don’t just absorb culture—they also help build it by working together, solving problems, and creating new rules with others. Tomasello’s updated theory shows that cultural learning is not just about copying or being taught—it’s about belonging, conforming, and co-creating the world around us. It helps explain how human cultures grow, change, and stay strong over time.

Emulative Learning

Emulative learning (observational learning) focuses on the environment, process, and outcomes of a specific observed event. In this type of learning, individuals learn about parts of their environment to achieve their goals. It is an observational learning mechanism (sometimes called a social learning mechanism). Emulation is different from imitation because it focuses on the environmental results of the actions instead of a model’s actions. In imitation, an individual learns by copying the actions of another; in emulation, they learn instead about the environment—for example, about the results of what others do or about the relevant properties of tools and other objects involved and the resulting outcomes. Emulation comprises a large span of cognitive complexity, from minimal cognitive complexity to very complex levels. “In emulation learning, learners see the movement of the objects involved and then come to some insight about its relevance to their problems” (Boesch & Tomasello, 1998). Emulation learning in tool-use tasks seems to require the perception and understanding of some causal relations among objects” (Call & Tomasello, 1995). This necessarily involves some insight, which is a cognitive process.

A growing body of developmental literature confirms the importance of social learning. Cross-cultural research in the area of developmental psychology has demonstrated that young children (toddlers) selectively attend to several essential cues like prestige (who does it best), sex and ethnicity (who sounds and looks like me), and familiarity (similarity in background). The research has also demonstrated that learning these cues happens at about the same time in human development and in the same order across cultures. Cues and social learning are not just for toddlers. Researchers examined undergraduate student performance and cues related to sex and ethnicity. After controlling for other variables, results showed students who received instruction from faculty of the same sex, ethnicity, or race were less likely to drop out and had better grades (Hoffman & Oreopoulous, 2009; Fairlie, Hoffman & Oreopoulous, 2011). These studies suggest that interpretation, motivation, and understanding cues have significant implications for early childhood development and later adoption of adult roles.

Recent autism research has provided an opportunity to explore the role of cues and attending even further. Autism research suggests that children with autism who miss out on these stages of attending have significant difficulty with social cues (Tomasello, Kruger, & Ratner, 1993). Additionally, children with autism have great difficulty sharing emotional states or understanding the intentions of others (Tomasello et al., 2005). By sharing intentions, humans can experience events and perspectives together (Tomasello et al., 2005). Shared intentionality is a cognitive process by which we see others as intentional agents. Shared intentionality encompasses interactions, commitment to a goal, and cooperation with others to achieve the goal, which are necessary elements for cultural learning and cultural adaptations (Heine, 2016; Tomasello et al., 2005). Shared intentionality is a key element in learning to cooperate, not only with members of the same culture but also with members of other groups.

Cooperation

Cooperation is the ability to work together toward common goals. Cooperation is required for the survival of any group. There is strong evidence that nonhuman primates (our genetic cousins) cooperate but that it is limited to kin or partners, with few documented cases of cooperation with intergroup members (e.g., strangers) (Melis & Semmann, 2010). Cooperating with strangers to complete complex goals appears to be a uniquely human behavior. There are several explanations for this phenomenon, including cognitive skills, protection from conflict, and the development of social norms.

Cognition Skills

As discussed earlier, humans have a unique ability to engage in social learning (Boyd et al., 2011; Hermann et al., 2007; Tomasello, 1999), as well as other psychological advantages, including memory, which help us to track who helped us and who we have helped (Hauser et al., 2009; Melis & Semmann, 2010). Perhaps most importantly, we can transfer all this information to others.

What is the Social Brain (YouTube)

Protection from Conflict

Cooperation may also have emerged due to external pressures (e.g., intergroup conflict, climate change, competition), which facilitated the formation of large groups. Bowles and colleagues (2013) suggest that competition with other groups brought about social changes, and groups better at cooperating were more likely to survive. Additionally, our ancient ancestors were more likely to be prey than predators, and being part of a large group offered some protection from predators (Hart & Sussman, 2009; Henrich, 2016). Dunbar (1993) has proposed that because early humans began living in large communities, language (a cognitive product) was developed. He suggests that humans require complex communication to maintain social cohesion and unity among group members.

Development of Social Norms

As groups became more extensive, humans established social rules or norms (Richerson & Boyd, 2008). Henrich (2016) argues that social norms within groups emerged because of our unique cognitive abilities for social learning (e.g., learning from someone else). By observing a model of appropriate behavior, humans learn what behavior is unacceptable, and those individuals who do not follow these social rules are often sanctioned (punished). Cooperation has spread across populations because of social norms that sanction intergroup conflict and promote fair treatment of group members. Research with infants less than a year old supports this argument.

Hamlin and colleagues used puppet morality play in an experiment with infants and toddlers, which found that children preferred people who help others reach a goal (prosocial behaviors) and avoided people who were harmful or who got in the way of others reaching a goal. As early as 3 months of age, humans evaluate the behaviors of others and assign a positive value to helpful, cooperative behaviors (Hamlin et al., 2007; Hamlin & Wynn, 2011) and negative values to harmful or selfish behaviors.

Children use social referencing to learn from others, mainly caregivers, about appropriate social norms and, as a result, prefer others who are helpful and avoid those who do not help others.

Prosocial behaviors and social norms that reward cooperation and helping become automatic over time and are reflected in our everyday choices as adults. For example, Rand and colleagues used the Public Goods Game, an economic experiment, to examine cooperation and competition (Rand, 2016). Participants decide how much to contribute to the public good in the game. If all participants contribute, the payoff is greater for the entire group. Early findings revealed that participants who made their contributions faster gave more to the public good (greater cooperation). These results were consistent in several replications (Cone & Rand, 2014); when forced to make a quick decision, participants cooperated more than when asked to reflect on their decision. It seems that under certain circumstances, social contexts, and social norms, ‘going with your gut’ leads to increased cooperation (Henrich, 2016).

Cumulative Cultural Learning

We read earlier in the lesson that certain animal species exhibit cultural transmission. However, only humans seem to have the ability for cumulative cultural changes that result in behaviors that no single person could have learned individually through a lifetime of trial and error. We call this cumulative cultural learning, which refers to human collective brain power (Tomasello & Moll, 2010) or a set of sophisticated skills that we possess (Henrich, 2016) that allow us to create practices, behaviors, norms, artifacts (things), and institutions that are retained by group members and transmitted across generations and to other groups.

Humans can use this collective brain power for novel problem-solving and adapting to changing environments and social conditions. Boyd, Richerson, and Henrich (2011a) go even further and suggest that culture is part of our human biology because our brains and bodies have been shaped and influenced over thousands of years in ways that promote the accumulation and transmission of knowledge.

Many researchers suggest that cumulative cultural evolution results from a ratchet effect that began when humans developed the cognitive infrastructure and processes to understand that others have intentions, so people can engage in coordinated efforts to achieve complex and specialized tasks (Tennie et al., 2009). The ratchet effect suggests that cultural adaptations and innovations are accumulated (become part of a more extensive library of knowledge) and then are expanded upon and refined across generations.

There are historical examples of cultures that have lost their  accumulated culture. Henrich (2004) details the experiences of Tasmanian islanders and explains, using a mathematical model, how cultural learning can be lost. History and social context are essential here – humans arrived in Tasmania from Australia (conceivably) about 34,000 years ago by crossing a land bridge that was later covered by rising ocean levels. Using archeological evidence, the early Tasmanians had a sophisticated toolkit with hundreds of tools and skills for hunting different animals. When eighteenth-century explorers arrived in Tasmania, the toolkit had only 24 tools, and the diet had significantly less variety than the early Tasmanians.

Henrich argues that the loss of knowledge happened because Tasmanians did not attend to the best models or teachers (or there were fewer skilled people), and the products created were imperfect. Over time, skills and knowledge were lost, which resulted in a loss of accumulated knowledge. It is generally accepted that innovations and cultural accumulation occur at a faster rate with larger groups that have greater interconnection. These ideas were tested in a laboratory experiment that used college students and a computer game (Derex et al., 2013). Students were shown a complicated fishing net and then asked to design the same net using a computer. Students were assigned to groups that ranged from 2 to 16 members, and each player had 15 attempts to design the net. Students earned points based on the quality of their work. To mimic social learning, students could select a model created by other group members. Researchers found that larger group members were more likely to complete the fishing net accurately with fewer trials. The researchers asserted that larger groups had more models from which to learn. This lab experiment and scientific observations reveal that in a large group, it is more likely that someone will come up with a great idea that can be maintained and improved by the group (Heine, 2016), and the learning process moves more quickly.

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