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The Tree Model of Culture WI

The document presents the tree model of culture which views culture as having observable aspects above ground and less observable foundational aspects below ground. The above ground aspects include things like dress, arts, music, and social interactions which are most visible. The below ground aspects are deeper values and beliefs like concepts of time, competition, child-rearing, and problem-solving which strongly influence a culture but are less visible. Culture can refer broadly to the practices of groups (Culture) or more specifically to the subjective behaviors and values within a culture (culture). Understanding differences in culture is important for building strong cross-cultural relationships.

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Sarah Ruiz
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91 views2 pages

The Tree Model of Culture WI

The document presents the tree model of culture which views culture as having observable aspects above ground and less observable foundational aspects below ground. The above ground aspects include things like dress, arts, music, and social interactions which are most visible. The below ground aspects are deeper values and beliefs like concepts of time, competition, child-rearing, and problem-solving which strongly influence a culture but are less visible. Culture can refer broadly to the practices of groups (Culture) or more specifically to the subjective behaviors and values within a culture (culture). Understanding differences in culture is important for building strong cross-cultural relationships.

Uploaded by

Sarah Ruiz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Tree Model of Culture

THE TREE MODEL OF CULTURE:


A tree model is one way to think about dimensions of culture and how they can interact. Like trees,
cultures come in a wide variety and are continually growing and changing—adapting to ever-changing
environments. A culture has some parts that you can observe through many senses “above ground.” At
the same time, important foundational aspects1 of culture are not observable; these roots are “below
ground”—usually primarily out of our awareness—and yet have a profound connection to each part of
the whole.

Above Ground
(primarily in our
awareness):
Dress, fine arts,
literature, drama,
classical music,
popular music, folk-
dancing, games,
cooking, social
interaction
preferences

Below Ground (primarily out of our awareness): Ordering of time; preference for competition or
cooperation, arrangement of physical space; rules of descent; relationship to animals; ideals governing
child raising; patters of superior/subordinate relations; courtship practices; conceptions of justice, of past
and future, of beauty, of cleanliness, of status mobility, and of “self”; notions of logic and validity, of
adolescence, of modesty, and of leadership; tempo of and incentives to work; patterns of group decision-
making; attitudes to the dependent; theory of disease; approaches to problem-solving; roles in relation to
status by age, sex, class, occupation, kinship, etc.; nature of friendship; patterns of handling emotions;
definition of insanity; conversational patterns in various social contexts; social interaction rate; and more.

1 Items in and out of awareness adapted from AFS Intercultural Programs, Inc. (1984) American Field Service Orientation Handbook,
4, p. 14.
DEFINITIONS OF CULTURE:
The concept of culture has many definitions. Here are two good ones:

● More than traits, values, customs, artifacts and institutions. It is also a way of being, thinking,
organizing knowledge, reasoning, problem solving, valuing past, present, and future; and relating
to others.2

● Culture is the collective programming of the human mind that distinguishes the members of one
human group from those of another. Culture in this sense is a system of collectively held values.3
Culture with a big “C” (Culture) includes dance, food, lecture, classical music, cultural systems; cultural
institutions among groups of people; these things can usually be seen. Culture with a little “c” (culture)
includes subjective behaviors and values within a culture which are not observable from the outside.4
These relate to the above and below ground parts of the tree model.
As we work towards culturally inclusive and open relationships, remember that differences in culture
and values aren’t things that need to be “fixed.” Rather, it is the responsibility of everyone to work
toward a mutual understanding of one another. See the handout Building Strong Relationships across
Difference for more tips on cross-cultural communication.

2 Mestenhauser, J. (Spring 1998). International education on the verge: A search for a new paradigm. International Education, 7(2-3),
pp. 68-76.
3 Hofstede, G. (1991). Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind. New York, NY, McGraw-Hill.
4 Bennett, M. (1998). Better Together than A-P-A-R-T at the Summer Institute for Intercultural Education. [Video].

Developed by Heidi Haugen, Extension Educator

An EEO/AA employer, University of Wisconsin-Extension provides equal opportunities in employment and programming, including Title VI, Title IX, and the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements. Adapted with permission from the University of Minnesota Extension, 2018.

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