What Is Cultural Relativism?: Human Biological Needs and Drives. Need Drive

Different: Food, language, government, religion, worldview, culture, history, idioms,
customs, traditions, etc.
Similarities: Overall similar purpose for each Nation-State, which is to improve the
quality of life for its people. Each culture is similar in the fact that they have a unique
history, demographic makeup, political institutions, penal systems, laws, regulations,
creature comforts, etc, etc, and so forth.
What is cultural relativism?
Have you ever seen or eaten food from another country, such as dried squid or fried
crickets and think of it as weird and gross? This is an example of ethnocentrism! That
means you use your own culture as the center and evaluate other cultures based
on it. You are judging, or making assumptions about the food of other countries based
on your own norms, values, or beliefs. Thinking “dried squid is smelly” or “people
shouldn’t eat insects” are examples of ethnocentrism in societies where people may not
eat dried squid or insects.
Cultural relativism refers to not judging a culture to our own standards of what is right
or wrong, strange or normal. Instead, we should try to understand cultural practices of
other groups in its own cultural context
cultural imperialism: the deliberate imposition of one’s own cultural values on another
culture
cultural relativism: the practice of assessing a culture by its own standards, and not in
comparison to another culture culture shock: an experience of personal disorientation
when confronted with an unfamiliar way of life
cultural universals: patterns or traits that are globally common to all societies
ethnocentrism: the practice of evaluating another culture according to the standards of
one’s own culture
material culture: the objects or belongings of a group of people
nonmaterial culture: the ideas, attitudes, and beliefs of a society
xenocentrism: a belief that another culture is superior to one’s own
1. Human biological needs and drives. From the psychological standpoint,

a need is a bodily lack or deprivation without which the human body stands to
perish. This includes the need for food, water, air and sunlight, locomotion, rest
and sleep, elimination of the body wastes, and sex. On the other hand, a drive is
that inner force or internal tension which impels a person to do something to
satisfy the need and restore internal balance or equilibrium, Example: Hunger,
thirst, and sex drive. In human societies, biological drives necessary for survival
acquire social and cultural significance. While hunger, thirst and sexual desire
are natural biological processes, society and culture dictate the kind of food to be
eaten, the kind of liquid to be taken, the kind of clothing to be worn, the kind of
sports and recreation to be engaged in, and even the kind of person to be taken
in as mate and the social conditions for mating. Culture provides a variety of
choices for the individual to satisfy his drives and needs.
2. Psychological processes. These refer to the totality and integration of an

individual’s mental and thought processes, such as cognition, perception,
memory, emotions, and other thinking processes. While these psychological
processes are natural biological processes, they are conditioned and affected by
the environment, the society and culture. The content of one’s thoughts,
observations and interpretations, the nobility of his emotions or the ingenuity of
his ideas are conditioned and affected by the environment and culture of the
society in which he lives.
3. Man’s highly developed nervous system. Clinical and genetic studies have

shown that man’s nervous system is much more developed and complex as
compared to that of animals. This biological difference enables man to emerge
with a superior intelligence necessary for effective adaptation to his environment
and the resolution of the problems of existence. He develops learned ways of
doing things and fashioned materials from his environment to come up with
useful products or man-made objects. He develops culture. Culture differentiates
man from animals and places him on top of the hierarchy of the animal kingdom.
4. Man’s highly developed vocal apparatus. While many, if not all, animals

produce a particular distinct sound, man is endowed with a highly complex vocal
apparatus for effective speech or language. Language is an indispensable factor
in the development and transmission of culture.
5. Man’s upright posture. With the exception of the monkeys, apes, chimpanzees,

and other man’s “simian” cousins, man differs from other animals on account of
his upright posture or vertical position. This characteristic allows for the freedom
of the arms and hands to be used for more creative and manipulative activities.
Coupled with this characteristic is his opposable thumb and dexterous fingers for
more delicate handling and manipulation of objects. It is almost unthinkable for
culture to be developed if man’s hands are fixed to the ground for locomotion like
most land animals.
6. Physical and social environment. The physical or natural environment greatly

affects man’s economic activities for the satisfaction of his needs and wants. It
can condition man to limit his choices on the available resources found in his
immediate environment. For instance, the kind of house to be built, the kind of
food to be eaten, the kind of crops to be planted, the kind of animals to be
domesticated, or the kind of clothes to be worn. The scarcity of material
resources can induce or motivate man to become more resourceful and
inventive. Thus, it has been stated that “need is the mother of invention.”
On the other hand, the social environment composed of the people around him
and the patterns and quality of social interactions composed of the people
provide him with the necessary socialization for his effective participation in the
society. His physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual needs are nurtured
by his social environment.
Factors That Account for Diversities or Differences in Culture
While all peoples have their respective cultures, there are observable differences in
their cultural ways, practices, beliefs, norms, values and other cultural aspects. The
following account for cultural differences:
1. Cultural variability. There are differences in culture because people devise different

solutions to the problems of existence. People make choices to satisfy their varied
needs. While some people stick to their traditional and conservative values and ways of
doing things, others who are more enterprising and change-oriented seek new ways of
satisfying their needs and interests through inventions, innovations, and advanced
technologies. There are observable differences in the behavioural manifestations of
similar cultural patterns.
2. Cultural relativity. Differences in culture also arise due to differences in beliefs, values,
norms and standards that societies use for interpreting the same or similar cultural trait.
Standards of behaviour must be understood within a society’s cultural context.
3. Environmental differences. People live in different kinds of environment. According to
Huxley – (1965), among the factors that give rise to cultural differences are the kind of
one’s environment, the available human and natural resources, the extent of exposure to
other people from whom they can borrow ideas and their cultural heritage.
4. Human ingenuity and ability to absorb and expand new culture. Although human
beings are similarly endowed with the same biological make-up, some people appear to
be more adaptive, integrative, creative and responsive to their natural and social
environments. Some people are more inventive: they are risk-takers and trail-blazers
with pioneering spirits, adventurers and innovators.

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Different: Food, language, government, religion, worldview, culture, history, idioms,

customs, traditions, etc.

What is cultural relativism?

1. Human biological needs and drives. From the psychological standpoint,

2. Psychological processes. These refer to the totality and integration of an

3. Man’s highly developed nervous system. Clinical and genetic studies have

4. Man’s highly developed vocal apparatus. While many, if not all, animals

5. Man’s upright posture. With the exception of the monkeys, apes, chimpanzees,

6. Physical and social environment. The physical or natural environment greatly

Factors That Account for Diversities or Differences in Culture

1. Cultural variability. There are differences in culture because people devise different

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