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PART I. INTRODUCTION
In today’s world people interact frequently with other people from many
different cultures. Because of access to telephones, television and electronic
mail it is relatively easy to be in touch with people from all parts of the world.
Moreover, as international travel becomes more accessible to more people, the
average person will have increasingly frequent contact with people from outside
his or her own culture. As a result, larger numbers of people will become aware
of differences in how people behave and in the values which they consider
important for a high-quality life. Therefore it is crucial to understand the
concepts of behaviours and values as they influence society and the people who
live within that society. When we talk about culture and the interaction among
people from various cultures, what do we mean by behaviour? What are values
and beliefs? And what is the relationship between behaviours and values?
Behaviour, or how people act, is easily observable. Every culture has its
own well-developed system of acceptable behaviours. For example, in Japan
people greet each other with a bow. There are different kinds of bows,
depending on whether a person is male or female, younger or older, of higher or
lower status. We learn behaviours. Sometimes they are taught to us directly, as
when our mothers say, “Don’t eat that way! That’s not polite!” We learn other
behaviours by observing the world around us and copying actions which we
perceive as acceptable – both to ourselves and society. Watch a young child
sometime. You will probably notice that at about the age of four or five the
child will begin to mimic the parents.
Values, on the other hand, are ideas or beliefs which society have about
what is considered important to have a high-quality life. These “value systems”
are the basis for the way people behave in a culture or society.
So, what is a “typical” British family? Have there been any changes in
family life in recent years? And who are those Americans? How do they live?
Do they all have cars? Are they like the people on the TV show “Santa
Barbara”? Why don’t older people live with their children? Why do children
move away from their families after high school? Why do they act the way they
do?
You’ll find the answers to all these questions in Text 1.
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