MYP Individuals & Societies Cultural Worldviews Notes

How Do Cultural Worldviews Shape How People Understand Reality?

1. A worldview is a broad framework for making sense of life.
2. A cultural worldview is a worldview shaped by the shared culture of one or more groups a person belongs to.
3. It influences how people answer questions such as:
   1. What is "right" and "wrong"?
   2. What does a "good life" look like?
   3. Who counts as "us" and "them"?
   4. How should power and resources be shared?
   5. What traditions should be protected, and what should change?
4. Cultural worldviews matter in Individuals and Societies because they influence both individual behaviour and the behaviour of institutions (such as schools, legal systems, governments, and media).
5. They also help explain why different communities may respond differently to the same event, policy, or global trend.

How Does Culture Provide Shared Meanings That Hold Social Groups Together?

1. Culture is not only about visible things like food, clothing, or festivals. It also includes invisible elements such as beliefs, moral expectations, and ideas about what counts as success.
2. One influential definition describes culture as a "complex whole" that includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and other acquired habits of people living in society.
3. This is important because it shows that culture shapes both what people do and what they believe people should do.
4. Social groups rely on shared expectations so that individuals can cooperate.
   1. When people broadly agree on what is normal or acceptable, everyday life becomes more predictable and stable.
   2. That stability supports the survival and prosperity of the group.

What Is The Link Between Values, Norms, And Ethics To Culture And Behaviour?