3.8 Summary

Culture refers to groups of people, the boundaries of which are blurred. The members of the group share a certain amount of explicit and tacit knowledge and have developed a sense of familiarity through a system of shared codes and routines. In accordance with our understanding of multi-collectivity, a person’s identity is linked to his or her affiliation to multiple groups and thus collectives. From such a perspective, national identity can be seen as just one affiliation among others.

Culture is not something we are born with, but is learned. This socialisation process takes place within the family, but also at school, university and within a professional environment. Our primary socialisation process takes place within the family in which we grow up and our family therefore equips us with basic cultural knowledge. This makes us a product of culture. However, as we move through life and are exposed to different experiences and knowledge, our cultural orientation may change. As we interact and communicate with others, we are also producers of culture. Finally, there is a close link between culture and context, which means that we can choose from our cultural scripts and thus adapt our behaviour depending on circumstances and the environment.

When we are aware of our cultural orientation it is easier to understand the behaviour of others. Developing a thorough understanding of our personal behavioural preferences will therefore be the aim of the upcoming session.