Definition of Culture: Anthropological Approaches

Culture as an Object of Study

When in 1952 American anthropologists Kroeber and Kluckhohn analyzed the scientific literature, they found 164 different definitions of the word "culture." Since then, their number has only increased. This points to something important: culture is not a simple concept with a single meaning. It is a multi-layered phenomenon that can be described from various angles and for different purposes.

For practical management, the most important thing is to understand that culture exists, that it influences people's behavior, and that it is reproduced and transmitted from person to person, from generation to generation. Understanding culture is a tool for a manager working in a complex environment.

The Classic Definition: Tylor

Edward Burnett Tylor in 1871 gave the first scientific definition: "Culture is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society."

Key words: "acquired"—culture is not innate; it is transmitted through learning and socialization. "As a member of society"—culture is social; it belongs to the group, not the individual. Tylor worked in the tradition of evolutionism and believed that cultures develop from "primitive" to "civilized." This concept is outdated, but the definition itself remains a valuable tool.

Culture as Shared Symbols: Geertz

Clifford Geertz (1926–2006)—one of the most influential anthropologists of the 20th century—defines culture as "webs of meaning" in which people are suspended. He compares culture to a text: the cultural analyst "reads" society as a text, deciphering the meanings that people embed in their behavior.

His method is "thick description": not simply recording what people do, but understanding what they mean. A famous example is winking. On the surface, it is the contraction of an eyelid. But "thick description" shows that it can be a nervous tic, an ironic comment, flirting, or a coded signal. Understanding which one it is—can only be achieved by understanding the context of cultural meanings.

For a manager, this means that it is not enough to observe employee behavior—one needs to understand the meaning they put into it. The same act (for example, silence at a meeting) can mean agreement, disagreement, respect, fear, or simply lack of interest—depending on the cultural context.

Culture as an Iceberg

One of the most popular metaphors for culture is the iceberg. The visible part (10%): clothing, food, music, architecture, languages. The invisible part (90%): values, beliefs, norms, attitudes toward power, time, space, uncertainty, individualism, and collectivism.

It is precisely the invisible part that determines behavior. When managers from different countries cannot reach an agreement, the problem is often not in what they say, but in what they take for granted—and what lies deep in the invisible part of the iceberg. Conflicts between Western and Eastern teams are often caused not by malicious intent, but by differing unconscious assumptions about how hierarchy, time, and decision-making should work.

Functions of Culture

Why does culture exist at all? Anthropologists identify several key functions.

Coordination. Culture creates shared expectations about behavior, allowing people to coordinate actions without constant negotiation. When you enter a store, you know how to behave—not because you read a manual, but because culture has already instilled this knowledge.

Adaptation. Culture is the collective memory of what has worked. Traditional practices often contain built-in wisdom about survival in a particular climate, economy, and social environment. This is not always rationally explicable, but it is functional.

Meaning. Culture answers the questions of "why"—it gives meaning to existence, suffering, death, labor. Without cultural meaning, life is "existentially unbearable" (Geertz).

Culture and Nature

A fundamental anthropological question: what in a person is nature (universal, biological), and what is culture (specific, social)? Structuralist Claude Lévi-Strauss showed that certain structures (binary oppositions, incest taboo, kinship systems) are universal. But their concrete content varies.

For a manager, this is practically important: some aspects of motivation, emotions, and needs are universal. Others are culturally specific. Motivation programs developed in the USA may not work in Japan—not because the Japanese are "different," but because their cultural assumptions about work, recognition, and success differ.

Cultural Studies as Method

Cultural studies is not simply the study of "foreign" cultures. It is a way to estrange oneself from one's own culture: to see its assumptions as assumptions, not as "self-evident" facts. This is precisely what frees one from cultural determinism: since these are assumptions, not facts, they can be recognized, discussed, changed.

Question for reflection: Try to describe three "self-evident" rules of your workplace culture—things that are "customary" but never explicitly discussed. Why do they exist? Do they work today?