Cultural Diffusion

Process of Cultural Diffusion

Borrowing from one culture to another is common although the donor culture is not necessarily the original inventor. For example, of the many new academic books and articles published every year, an analysis of these “new” texts and themes will reveal few ideas that can be labeled “original.” The history of thought and creativity must thus be taken into consideration while exploring the parameters of cultural diffusion. Does the borrowing culture fuse or merge with the contributing culture wherein both cultures lose their single identity? Why, in fact, do cultures have a need to borrow from other cultures? Is it out of necessity? An underlying assumption is that borrowing makes a culture better, stronger, more evolved as in adapting to constantly changing physical environments, more modern, and hence, more civilized. This assumption leads to the observation that some cultural elements do not diffuse.

Several social issues are important when considering the process of diffusion. Is the borrowed cultural element a basic need, such as technology that harvests food crops for human consumption? Does it enhance the quality of life, as in the case of people who use in vitro fertilization as a family planning option? Just because the scientific community argues the importance and immediate use of stem cell research, does it mean that a culture's normative structure needs rules on sanctions for this technology? What has happened to individuals' civil liberties around the world in a post-9/11 world surveillance culture? Also, when religious institutions televise their services, are these efficient means to reach and shepherd larger congregations? Perhaps an even more fraught argument to technological intervention in social institutions would be the tenuous use of teaching social science classes online or offering them through televised satellite centers. What happens to the affective, effusive, volatile, provocative, soul searching, compassion, and empathy building in both of these cases? The impulse for efficiency is positive, but an arguable consequence is the loss of accountability and a diminished sense of human connectedness. Guiding the adaptation of the imported cultural element are evaluative considerations, the mechanics of implementation, and the terms of transfer decided upon by the receptor culture.

If the cultural element under consideration is not compatible with the values of the dominant culture, key decision makers, or gatekeepers, its importation is unlikely. This power elite can also force change on groups not in agreement with the imported practice. Obliging elderly people not computer literate to order their medication online and have it delivered to their homes is a good example of borrowed cultural elements forced on receptor cultures. Although this process may eliminate the need to pick up medicine in person, the reality that the elderly are more familiar with typewriters than with computers suggests that there are some overlooked details in implementation. Subcultures thus can retain their identity, while losing their autonomy, with a borrowed element used as a social control mechanism.

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