1. Cultural Change

2. Analytical Problems Determining the causes of change Assessing the type of change Determining the speed of change Assessing the impact of change

3. Causation Determining change in culture is difficult Change can come from any, or several, areas Most changes do not have single causes Learning the cause of change is not simple

4. Types of Change Many different typologies for change, but most are similar and types of change are often overlapping Cumulative Innovation Extinction Evolution Systems

5. Cumulative Change Cultures change by being additive or cumulative Most changes are gradual and simply add to the culture in question Gradual change can make sudden and more substantive change possible

6. Innovation Bringing new elements to a culture Four sub-types: Discovery Invention Diffusion Alteration

7. Innovation  Discovery When totally new elements are brought to a culture by the culture itself Exceedingly rare Culture may consider the new item to be revolutionary Examples: Copernican revolution or landing on the Moon

8. Innovation  Invention Far more common Recombination of elements already existing in a culture, usually brought about by pressing cultural needs “Necessity is the mother of invention”

9. Innovation  Diffusion Occurs when elements come in from outside the culture Fairly common, unless a culture is completely isolated Three types of traits: Single Complex Stimulus

10. Innovation  Diffusion 2 Single trait  a few or single items come in; often the result of trade; common Complex  whole cluster of related items come in; during conquest or colonization; relatively rare Stimulus  idea that comes in; translated into local media; fairly common; result of simple contact

11. Innovation  Alteration Difficult Usually equated with minor stylistic change, usually of an unimportant kind Importance may be a matter of history and is difficult to determine

12. Extinction Involves how elements are removed from a system Intersocietal selection  usually involves forced change imposed from outside Intrasocietal selection  a culture itself decides to remove items; relatively rare

13. Evolution Usually equated to technological change in a culture Can be sudden or gradual, depending on a culture’s needs in adapting to changing environments Most quantifiable of the types of change

14. Systems Cultures are integrated wholes Change comes from and occur to many parts of the system at once Wholes with irreducible parts, more than the sum of the parts Open and in steady state Hierarchical and integrated Common at lower levels with little impact on the upper levels