Culture refers to the intangible aspects of the social life that consists of practices, communication, language, belief, and values that is a common factor between a group of several people referred to as in a collective manner.
It is made up of expectations, assumptions, common sense along with the morals and laws that govern society along with collective practices like a celebration of secular holidays and religious ceremonies. Culture also includes the material objects that are common or is shared by the group or society, for instance, the things that we can make and use for instance art, literature, music, films, gadgets, buildings, etc.
Culture is an important concept as it plays a defining role in human life. It helps in shaping social aspects of our life, maintaining relationships, challenging social orders and determining our place in the scheme of things.
Culture refers to a community or a group that shares common understanding and experiences. It includes the group into which a person is born and which determines his religion, class, gender, nationality, and race. Sometimes an individual is influenced by a different concept and becomes a part of it. He then acquires a new culture and this is possible if that person accepts a new religion, new country or most commonly in case of an upgrade of economic status.
Culture also helps in shaping and determining our daily actions and experiences that we feel in society. It has a direct impact on the loyalties, values, worries, and hopes, etc of our lives hence it is imperative that we have a basic knowledge of the culture we may come into contact with on a regular basis to gain a better understanding of the situation.
This will offer you a new perspective and prove tremendous help in the days to come. You can also know about the similarities and differences between your and someone else’s culture so that you can avoid any sort of discrimination in the future and promote working in a diverse group that has overcome internal oppression and bias.
Table of Contents
1. Importance of culture in the social environment
Culture is defined as a means of creating the identity of an individual or an entity and boosting the sense of belonging of a community. Participation in cultural activities is an experience that is shared with others for the purpose of learning and entertainment. It has a direct and indirect impact on human beings because it provides a moving experience of the delight that is intellectually and emotionally fulfilling.
Sometimes it can also prove unsettling but in most cases, the experiences are deeply personal and gratifying. The importance of culture in the social environment is that it helps to bring people closer. It is important to learn about cultural differences in a group or a community so as to understand the needs of every individual.
Recognizing these differences helps in identifying problems and treating people and relevant issues with consideration and care.
2. Importance of culture in business organization
The importance of culture is felt in the business organization deeply because it helps to define the identity of that entity. How an organization functions and interacts with inside and outside forces like media, suppliers, employees, customers, and partners is very important as it represents the way business activities are conducted.
Culture is actually a reflection of the core values of a company and it adds up to the mission and vision of the company and whether actions are in accordance with those values and beliefs. It is vital to keep the culture and core values of an organization in front as it will be its external and internal identity and will determine how customers and other people perceive the business.
The importance of culture in a business organization is that it has the ability to turn employees into cultural advocates of your organization. When employees feel that the contribution matters they promote and live the culture internally and externally.
Remember it is the culture of a place that assists in smooth Onboarding, transforms individuals into a well-organized team and impacts employee well-being and performances in an organization.
3. Importance of culture in building communities
Understanding culture and its deeper intricacies is a necessity in order to build communities that can resolve issues and improve living conditions. The first thing to do is to have an interest in many cultures, understand them and later establish a relationship with individuals belonging to people of other cultures.
The importance of culture is that it will help to build strong alliances in communities with different and varied cultural groups. It is a fact that when cultural groups join forces, they become powerful enough to make a difference.
It brings forth a change that is effective and has far-reaching consequences. The cultural groups have numerous effective ideas that offer a fresh perspective and can enrich the lives of the community and solve related problems. The only way to build good communities is to welcome everyone even though he belongs to a different culture.
Make sure that he is being appreciated as others by letting him know that his culture is as important as any others in the scheme of things. Never ever indulge in a blame game in adverse conditions because when you point finger at someone it not only condemns him but fosters misunderstanding and grievances. Transform your communities so that they become actively involved by appearing as an active group who is working for the betterment of society.
4. Importance of culture in economic development
The importance of culture is that it helps in the economic development of a country. It boosts opportunities for the creation of both indirect and direct jobs. This actually leads to innovation in different industries in the form of an increase in local tourism activities, community branding, regional development and growth, and productivity improvement.
A culture is an important tool that has been able to create economic opportunities for better productivity, efficiency, and growth. Innovative products and services that have been customized to add value are at the center of cultural and economic development.
5. Importance of culture for individuals
The importance of culture for individuals is that it helps to boost resilience power, build self-esteem and encourage thinking skills that will result in an improved learning process. Ethnic and racial divisions lead to loss of opportunities, violence, and misunderstandings. It results in the loss of human and financial resources that can lead to several other problems.
The importance of culture is that understanding it helps to overcome such issues. Include people from different cultures in the decision making the process and their implementation so that you can create an equitable society that is just and fair in its dealings.
Culture and participation in cultural activities also encourage learning valuable skills that will prove beneficial in the long run. It is a fact that cultural heritage offers viable opportunities for better learning and understanding. Public libraries, museums, and community hubs have played a critical role in imparting cultural knowledge amongst individuals, in boosting the literacy rate and maximizing cognitive abilities.
Creativity is an integral part of culture and participation in creative cultural activities has been shown to have a deeper impact on the physical, emotional and mental health of a person. Activities like fairs, festivals, and celebrations help in creating solidarity between communities. It builds social capital, encourages social inclusion, boosts confidence, encourages tolerance and increases confidence.
The importance of culture is that it helps society in reducing poverty by building new job opportunities and creating facilities that will help in community empowerment.
6. Importance of culture in sociology
Culture with its intrinsic value provides social, economic and political benefits, for instance, increased tolerance and additional knowledge for enhancing the life and overall well-being for communities and individuals. It is a vital aspect of social organization as well as human social life and without it, there would not be any relationships or societies.
Culture matters greatly to sociologists because it has a defining role to play in the making of social order which refers to a collective agreement to the norms that will enable them to function and cooperate in society in a peaceful manner.
It is both the non-material and material aspects of culture that hold the society together because mutual practices, communication, and values offer a sense of purpose and identity that is shared collectively by everyone. It is a fact that when a community or society takes part in a common ritual, festival or celebration they are able to strengthen their social ties.
