Title

A Cognitive Theory of Cultural Meaning

Authors

Claudia Strauss, Pitzer CollegeFollow
Naomi Quinn, Duke University

Files

Description

"Culture" and "meaning" are central to anthropology, but anthropologists do not agree on what they are. Claudia Strauss and Naomi Quinn propose a new theory of cultural meaning, one that gives priority to the way people's experiences are internalized. Drawing on "connectionist" or "neural network" models as well as other psychological theories, they argue that cultural meanings are not fixed or limited to static groups, but neither are they constantly revised or contested. Their approach is illustrated by original research on understandings of marriage and ideas of success in the United States.

ISBN

9780521595414

Publication Date

1-1997

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

City

Cambridge

Keywords

anthropology, culture, psychology

Disciplines

Anthropology | Social and Cultural Anthropology

Recommended Citation

Strauss, Claudia, and Naomi Quinn. A Cognitive Theory of Cultural Meaning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998.