How does culture shape the body?

Magazines and television are often blamed for portraying an ideal body image that causes people to question their looks and lose confidence in themselves. But what about the role social media plays in moulding attitudes to the way we look?

Kelsey Hibberd, from Southend, remembers her years at secondary school as being miserable. She intentionally kept her Facebook friends to a minimum because she knew they were the ones who wouldn't pick on her.

"I'd always been tall, and I was a bit podgy too," she says.

"No-one seemed to notice at primary school, but then in Year 7 everyone started pointing at me, noticing things, making me think I was ugly and not special."

She became increasingly conscious of even tiny things such as the shape of her eyebrows and size of her forehead.

"I would have been subject to much more abuse if I'd had more friends on social media," she says.

Kelsey describes the bullying she experienced between the ages of 11 and 16 as "absolutely awful".

"It was all about my body and how I looked," she says.

She changed her hair colour and stopped eating to try to fit in before she realised that "it was for other people to stop hating on me".

Now, at 20, Kelsey is running a mentoring programme called Loud Education, which goes into schools to talk to pupils and train teachers on how to deal with body confidence issues. It also provides advice on any lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues pupils might have.

As a result, she is well aware of the power of social media. Teenagers can have thousands of "friends" online and that can leave them exposed, she says.

"You put forward your best self, and that can be a bit dangerous, because you naturally compare yourself to others," she says.

Among teenagers, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and a number of other messaging apps, such as WhatsApp, are their main means of communicating with each other and the world.

In 2013, two-thirds of teenagers had signed up to the Facebook app, where images are posted and shared millions of times a day.

Never have they known so much about their friends' lives and the way they look.

In 2012, MPs recommended that all schoolchildren should take part in compulsory body image and self-esteem lessons.

An inquiry by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Body Image heard evidence that girls as young as five were worrying about their size and their appearance.

Adults were not immune from these negative attitudes either, with about 60% of the public feeling ashamed of the way they looked.

The MPs' report said pressure to look good had pushed up cosmetic surgery rates by nearly 20% since 2008.

Superstitions & Magical Thinking

It’s Friday the 13th. Do you believe in magic? According to Matthew Hutson, author of new book The 7 Laws of Magical Thinking: How Irrational Beliefs Keep Us Happy, Healthy, and Sane, we’re all believers—even the most skeptical among us.

“Magical thinking is ubiquitous,” says Hutson, a former editor of Psychology Today. “Everyone is susceptible to it. And while we tend to think of distorted perceptions of reality as inherently bad, sometimes they’re actually good for us.”

Hutson, who researched the book for nearly six years, defines “magical thinking” as attributing mental properties to non-mental phenomenon by interpreting natural events as having purpose and meaning or treating your thoughts as if they have physical power. If you believe in luck, karma, jinxes, destiny or the afterlife, then you believe in magic.

Drawing on evolutionary research, cognitive science and neuroscience, Hutson claims that magical thinking has been so important to our survival that it’s hardwired into the brain. It helps us make sense of an irrational world and gives us comfort, agency and control. He breaks down the seven types of magical thought and how they can fuel your success.

Objects Carry Essences

Would you pay more for an autographed baseball or a dress worn by your favorite celebrity? Would you refuse to buy a house where a murderer had lived? This is magical thinking, says Hutson, rooted in the idea of property transmission—handling something dirty makes us dirty and touching something hot burns our skin. The belief that subjective properties can be transferred through your lucky ball cap is irrational, but it can provide comfort, confidence and a feeling of control over the world. Your wedding ring or grandmother’s pearls may not be instilled with any real spirit, but they help you feel closer to the loved one.

The Mind Knows No Bounds

Actor Jim Carrey famously wrote himself a check for $10 million and carried it in his wallet until he could cash it 10 years later. Hutson says the law of attraction is the belief that visualizing something will make it real. Rhonda Byrne made this a best-selling idea with 2007 book The Secret, which said if you pictured the life you wanted, the universe would deliver it to you. “Scientifically, the law of attraction actually does work,” says Hutson—but not because of mental frequencies. Positive expectations become self-fulfilling prophesies, as you’re more likely to know what you want, recognize opportunities for success and project confidence.

Symbols Have Power

If you believe rain on your wedding day forecasts a stormy marriage, then you attribute meaning to symbols. Hutson calls this the law of similarity, or believing that causes resemble effects. It can be logical—a star-shaped cookie cutter will produce a star-shaped cookie—but not always is. In experiments, people become anxious when they are asked to cut up a photo of someone they love, worrying the act might cause them bodily harm. However, believing in the symbolic power of ritual acts, like a wedding ceremony, offers people a sense of predictability that they crave.

Actions Have Distant Consequences

Luck. Superstition. Karma. What goes around comes around. These are all magical thoughts that help us explain the world. “The brain is wired to see patterns, so we make connections and create explanations,” says Hutson. Feeling lucky and following superstitions actually boosts your performance by giving you more confidence and optimism. Hutson highlights one study in which people were more likely to make golf putts after the researcher said, “I’m crossing my fingers.”

The Soul Lives On

“The available evidence indicates that consciousness or awareness, which many call the soul, is generated by the brain,” says Hutson. Yet one of the most commonly held beliefs is that the soul lives on after the brain and body die. This serves an important evolutionary purpose. Believing in an afterlife protects you from the potentially crippling fear of your own mortality. It also helps you cope with and grieve a loved one’s death.

The World Is Alive

Have you ever yelled at your malfunctioning laptop, believing it was out to get you? Wondered if your dog was depressed or celebrated your cat’s birthday? Highly irrational, says Hutson. He explains that attributing human characteristics to animals, technology and gods (anthropomorphism) stems from our agency detection—being attuned to the thoughts and desires of others—an important survival skill as a social species. Over-attributing human qualities or intentions to animals can be beneficial. Studies show that animal companionship helps people live longer, happier lives.

Everything Happens For A Reason

Ideas of fate, destiny and divine intervention are teleological; part of the mind’s search for intentionality in the world. “We create an invisible being, be it God, destiny, karma or the universe, to blame events on,” says Hutson. “It provides a sense of meaning in life. You feel like what happens to you is part of a larger narrative. The universe cares about you. And if something bad happens, you’re more likely to view it as a lesson or calling to do something positive.”

Is Race Real?

How can there be a “white” Hispanic?  Why is there a preponderance of “black” players in the NBA?   Why is the infant mortality rate of blacks double that of whites in the USA?  

I’ll give you a hint—it’s not about biology. In humans today there are not multiple biological groups called “races.”  However, race is real and it impacts us all.  What we call “race” are social categories.  They play a role in our lives, histories and futures. We talk about race, or avoid talking about it, all the time…but few of us really stop and think about what race really is, and importantly, what it is not.

There is currently one biological race in our species: Homo sapiens sapiens. However, that does not mean that what we call “races” (our society’s way of dividing people up) don’t exist.  Societies, like the USA, construct racial classifications, not as units of biology, but as ways to lump together groups of people with varying historical, linguistic, ethnic, religious, or other backgrounds. These categories are not static, they change over time as societies grow and diversify and alter their social, political and historical make-ups. For example, in the USA the Irish were not always “white,” and despite our government’s legal definition, most Hispanics/Latinos are not seen as white today (by themselves or by others).

This is a difficult concept and it seems to come up again and again, so let me provide a few points to bust the myth and to clarify the reality…

There is no genetic sequence unique to blacks or whites or Asians. In fact, these categories don’t reflect biological groupings at all. There is more genetic variation in the diverse populations from the continent of Africa (who some would lump into a “black” category) than exists in ALL populations from outside of Africa (the rest of the world) combined!

There are no specific racial genes. There are no genes that make blacks in the USA more susceptible to high blood pressure, just as there are no genes for particular kinds of cancers that can be assigned to only one racial grouping. There is no neurological patterning that distinguishes races from one another, nor are there patterns in muscle development and structure, digestive tracts, hand-eye coordination, or any other such measures. 

Even something thought to be so ubiquitous as skin color works only in a limited way as dark or light skin tells us only about a human’s amount of ancestry relative to the equator, not anything about the specific population or part of the planet they might be descended from. 

There is not a single biological element unique to any of the groups we call white, black, Asian, Latino, etc. In fact, no matter how hard people try, there has never been a successful scientific way to justify any racial classification, in biology. This is not to say that humans don’t vary biologically, we do, a lot.  But rather that the variation is not racially distributed. If you don’t believe me, check it out for yourself by having a look at some of the references below. Seriously, there are no biological races in humans today, period.

Why is busting this myth of a biological basis of race important in a blog for Psychology Today?  Because, if you look across the USA you can see that there are patterns of racial difference, such as income inequalities, health disparities, differences in academic achievement and representation in professional sports.  If one thinks that these patterns of racial differences have a biological basis, if we see them as “natural,” racial inequality becomes just part of the human experience (remember a book called The Bell Curve?).  This fallacy influences people to see racism and inequality not as the products of economic, social, and political histories but more as a natural state of affairs.

Art & Performance

Art is a diverse range of human activities in creating visual, auditory or performing artifacts – artworks, expressing the author's imaginative or technical skill, intended to be appreciated for their beauty or emotional power. In their most general form these activities include the production of works of art, the criticism of art, the study of the history of art, and the aesthetic dissemination of art.

The oldest documented forms of art are visual arts, which include creation of images or objects in fields including painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, and other visual media. Architecture is often included as one of the visual arts; however, like the decorative arts, it involves the creation of objects where the practical considerations of use are essential—in a way that they usually are not in a painting, for example. Music, theater, film, dance, and other performing arts, as well as literature and other media such as interactive media, are included in a broader definition of art or the arts. Until the 17th century, art referred to any skill or mastery and was not differentiated from crafts or sciences. In modern usage after the 17th century, where aesthetic considerations are paramount, the fine arts are separated and distinguished from acquired skills in general, such as the decorative or applied arts.

Art may be characterized in terms of mimesis (its representation of reality), expression, communication of emotion, or other qualities. During the Romantic period, art came to be seen as "a special faculty of the human mind to be classified with religion and science". Though the definition of what constitutes art is disputed and has changed over time, general descriptions mention an idea of imaginative or technical skill stemming from human agency and creation.

The nature of art, and related concepts such as creativity and interpretation, are explored in a branch of philosophy known as aesthetics.

A performance, in the performing arts, generally comprises an event in which a performer or group of performers present one or more works of art to an audience. Usually the performers participate in rehearsals beforehand. Afterwards audience members often applaud. After a performance, performance measurement sometimes occurs. Performance measurement is the process of collecting, analyzing and reporting information regarding the performance of an individual, group, organization, system or component.

The means of expressing appreciation can vary by culture. Chinese performers will clap with the audience at the end of a performance; the return applause signals "thank you" to the audience. In Japan, folk performing-arts performances commonly attract individuals who take photographs, sometimes getting up to the stage and within inches of performer's faces.

Sometimes the dividing line between performer and the audience may become blurred, as in the example of "participatory theater" where audience members get involved in the production.

Theatrical performances can take place daily or at some other regular interval. Performances can take place at designated performance spaces (such as a theater or concert hall), or in a non-conventional space, such as a subway station, on the street, or in somebody's home.

Tradition & Modernity

"Tradition" and "modernity" are widely used as polar opposites in a linear theory of social change. This theory is examined in the light of Indian and other materials on development. Seven fallacies in this contrast usage are presented. It is incorrect to view traditional societies as static, normatively consist, or structurally homogeneous. 

The relations between the traditional and the modern do not necessarily involve idsplacement, conflict, or exclusiveness. Modernity does not necessarily weaken tradition. Both tradition and modernity form the bases of ideologies and movements in which the polar opposites are converted into aspirations, but traditional forms may supply support for, as well as against, change.

Tradition and Modernity are not contradictory or exclusive. They are merely two different classes of things which can however interact beneficially. Tradition is still very often considered as a "thing of the past" without any contemporary legitimacy, and modernity is often mistakenly considered as modernism. 

The "contemporary", the "modern" and  the "traditional" are defined in a context of practice of "virtue" and in the perspective of the "good life", based on the potentials of our time, and the selected wisdom of past times.

Sex & Gender

What is the difference between sex and gender?

Sex = male and female

Gender = masculine and feminine

So in essence:

Sex refers to biological differences; chromosomes, hormonal profiles, internal and external sex organs.

Gender describes the characteristics that a society or culture delineates as masculine or feminine.

So while your sex as male or female is a biological fact that is the same in any culture, what that sex means in terms of your gender role as a 'man' or a 'woman' in society can be quite different cross culturally. These 'gender roles' have an impact on the health of the individual.

In sociological terms 'gender role' refers to the characteristics and behaviors that different cultures attribute to the sexes. What it means to be a 'real man' in any culture requires male sex plus what our various cultures define as masculine characteristics and behaviors, likewise a 'real woman' needs female sex and feminine characteristics. 

To summarise:

'man' = male sex+ masculine social role

(a 'real man', 'masculine' or 'manly')

'woman' = female sex + feminine social role

(a 'real woman', 'feminine' or 'womanly')

Birth & Death

Rites of Birth & Death
NONRELIGIOUS Worldview

There are no special rituals for birth or death, but there may be distinctive
observances consisting of secular elements excerpted from familiar
customs of the cultural surroundings. For example, in the United States,
holding a solemn gathering and eulogizing the deceased person is
commonplace. More frequently, friends and/or family may arrange for a
“joyful celebration of life” memorial event in addition to or in lieu of a
cremation or burial ceremony.
BUDDHIST Worldview

Buddhists invite monks and nuns to attend such events and to read the
scriptures, but the main ceremonies are generally from older traditions. In
Theravada Buddhism, funerals are occasions for teaching about suffering
and impermanence and for chanting paritta (protection) in order to gain and
transfer merit for the sake of the deceased.
CHRISTIAN Worldview

Many Christians are baptized into the Church while they are babies, but this
can be done at any time in life. At death, Christians are laid to rest in the
hope of the resurrection of the dead. Cremation and burial are both
acceptable.
HINDU Worldview

Before birth and in the first months of life, there are many ceremonies. These
include: reciting the scriptures to the baby in the womb; casting its
horoscope when it is born; cutting its hair for the first time. At death, bodies
are cremated and the ashes thrown on to a sacred river. The River Ganges
is the most sacred river of all.
MUSLIM Worldview

At birth, the call to prayer is whispered into the baby's ear. After seven days
the baby is given a name, shaved, and baby boys are circumcised. At a
person’s death, the body is washed as if ready for prayer and then buried as
soon as possible. Cremation is not allowed.
JEWISH Worldview

Baby boys are circumcised eight days after birth. The names of girls are
announced in the synagogue on the first Sabbath after birth. Burial takes
place within 24 hours of death and cremation is very rare. The family is in full
mourning for seven days and, for eleven months, the special prayer Kadish
is said every day.
SIKH Worldview

At birth, the Mool mantra, the core teaching of Sikhism, is whispered into the
baby's ear. The baby is named at the gurdwara, or place of worship. The
Guru Granth Sahib is opened and the first letter of the first word on the page
gives the first letter of the baby's name. At death, the body is cremated and
the ashes thrown onto running water.
TAO Worldview

Horoscopes are cast at birth. After a month a naming ceremony is held. At
death, the body is buried and paper models of money, houses and cars are
burnt to help the soul in the afterlife. After about ten years the body is dug up
and the bones buried again in an auspicious site.
DEIST Worldview (of historical interest)
Deists of the 18th centuries participated to varying degrees in the rites and
observances stipulated by their surrounding (mostly Christian) communities.
Those in the upper classes, though differing in belief to the orthodoxy, still
continued generally loyal to convention, and so they remained technically
within their churches and participated on social grounds as expected (e.g.,
having children baptized, allowing a religious burial ceremony).