How Does Culture Affect Sociology

Cultures and How They're Affected Sociologically

The influence that culture has on people in social psychology from a sociological standpoint is enormous. Culture affects the values of people across the globe as well as their roles and social norms, including their organizations and, within that, their social statuses. Scottish, South Korean, and Chinese cultures are great examples of how different geographical locations, climates, and histories influence people and their lifestyles. Scotland is a quality example of social norms and traditions that age back to the beginning of their time and are still around to this day.

Scotland today is well-known around the world for their kilts, whiskey, and bagpipes and all three of these are almost

as old as the land itself. However, the biggest tradition and most known event of Scotland would be the Highland Games. These games consist of
a unique mix of sports, culture and community. They usually comprise a programme of field and track events, piping and Highland dancing competitions and 'heavy events' like the tug-o-war, the hammer throw and tossing the caber. The contests of strength – jumping, running, throwing and riding – were introduced by Malcolm Canmore in 1040 as a means of selecting the most able men for soldiers and couriers. ("About Highland Games", n.d.).
The Highland Games, however, did not originate in Scotland but brought overseas from Ireland back in 2,000 B.C. Traditionally, after a full day of competitive Scottish games and dancing, there is a ceilidh. A ceilidh is an evening event of "informal Scottish traditional dancing to informal music." ("Ceilidh", n.d.). Highland games also used to act as a social institution in that some families of women being proposed to would use them to decide whether the man proposing was worthy or strong enough to marry the woman. The social statuses of people in Scotland, though, are not as greatly represented as they are in South Korea where social statuses play a tremendous role in their day-to-day lives.
South Korea, amongst other Asian countries, places a high importance on education, wealth, family history, and their careers. In this culture specifically, their language is based around the aforementioned social statuses. If speaking to an elder, someone of wealth, or of higher education, then speaking formally and bowing low and for a longer period of time is very usual.
… bowing has deep roots in Korean society, probably predating the entry of Buddhism and Confucianism into Korea in the Three Kingdoms period (57 B.C.-668). Both Buddhism and Christianity had profound impacts on the behavior of Koreans but Confucianism, with its teachings on the position of the individual in society, greatly influenced Korean etiquette. (MacGregor, 2008).
However, if speaking to someone younger, poorer, or not as educated (even if they are one year below in college, secondary, or primary school) the form of speech is usually lowered into a casual, less formal tone, while the younger person retains their formal speech. This may be peculiar to think about as someone born and raised in America, speaking English or even Spanish, since there aren't three different levels of formal speaking in these two widely used languages, but to the South Koreans it's a normal part of their social structure and personality. While China shares these similar aspects to South Korea in that their social statuses and structures are consequential in their everyday lives, there are other interesting aspects of Chinese culture that influence their values and traditions and still are celebrated today.
Nearly all Chinese traditions are born from their values and beliefs like religion. The most popular religion of China today is Buddhism, which was "… brought into China 2,000 years ago […] and developed into three sections, namely the Han, Tibetan and Southern Buddhism." ("Religions and Beliefs in China", n.d.). Buddhism's influence on Chinese culture is primarily seen in their literature and art. The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival is an ideal example of this as it is put on to show respect for the poet Qu Yuan. "Because Qu Yuan died on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, people decided to commemorate him on that day every year. Dragon boat racing and eating zongzi have become the central customs of the festival." ("Dragon Boat Festival", n.d.). China is a beautiful country filled with meaningful traditions, culture, and beliefs, but one specific law forbids them from having more than two children per household due to overpopulation, which leads to many deaths of children, and only if they're lucky, they will be adopted.
Using a sociological imagination, visualize finding out that someone raised in America had a twin living in China they didn't know about for most or all of their life and they just met them.

Meeting them would potentially be a culture shock. Their lifestyles are completely different, and their roles in their social structure from their separate cultures may also be disparate. America is the land of the free where everyone is to be treated as equals, whereas China is strict on their social structure and personality, and the living conditions aren't as acceptable as those in America. The roles of Chinese individuals play in a huge portion of their day to day lives, just like in South Korea. While China has beautiful landscapes and traditions, there are some parts of the country that are living so poorly that, unlike America, they grow their own food, work throughout each and every single day in fields to provide for themselves and their families. Some live like this by choice, some do not. For the American twin, this could potentially open their eyes and make them see that the world is not as they've always perceived it to be. The American could either refuse to open their mind and stay living in America where, compared to China, one doesn't need to work as arduously to get what they want or need, or they could explore different regions of China and experience their way of life to diversify their way of thinking, seeing people, and the world.

In conclusion, having a twin that was raised in a different country, in this instance, China, could broaden the twins' views of cultures. In addition, it could help them learn more about the wide variety of traditions that take place in other people's day-to-day lives, occasionally affecting lives of American citizens if they are emigrants from other countries, and help them see how government vastly influences the lives of other

people.