Culture and the individual: theory and method of cultural consonance

In: Key questions in anthropology

Abstract

How culture is incorporated into individuals' lives is a problem that has plagued the social sciences for centuries. This book examines the insights offered by approaching the question using a cognitive theory of culture. Culture and the Individual pulls together over twenty-five years of research on cultural consonance, defined as the degree to which individuals incorporate into their own beliefs and behaviors the prototypes for belief and behavior encoded in shared cultural models. Starting with a critical overview of the treatment of culture and the individual in anthropology, Dressler goes on to make the case for adopting a cognitive theory of culture in researching the relationship, introducing the concept of cultural consonance as a solution. Placing the concept in its theoretical context, he examines both how cultural consonance can be measured and what it can reveal, focusing in particular on the field of health. Written in an accessible style by an experienced medical anthropologist who has spent his career researching and teaching on the subject of cultural consonance, this is an essential overview of the topic for students of all levels, as well as academics in neighboring fields