The document describes the Iceberg Model of Culture which proposes that culture has different layers from surface to deep. The surface culture is the most visible and includes elements like food, dress, music and language. Below this is the deep culture of unspoken rules around behaviors and norms. Deepest is the unconscious culture of underlying values and assumptions. An example is provided for each layer around Thanksgiving traditions, grocery shopping etiquette, and attitudes towards nudity. The model suggests that deeper levels involve higher emotional investment and less visible aspects of culture.

1. The Iceberg Model of Culture

2. Surface Culture
Above the Surface
Emotional Load: Relatively Low
Deep Culture
Unspoken Rules
Just Below the Surface
Behavior-Based
Emotional Load: High
Unconscious Rules
Far Below Surface
Value-Based
Emotional Load: INTENSE

3. Surface Culture
Above the Surface
Emotional Load: Relatively Low
Food * Dress * Music * Visual Arts * Drama * Crafts *
Dance * Literature * Language * Celebrations * Games
The kind of VISUAL elements of culture that are easily
identifiable, easily shared, and easily accessed.
“Everybody does it differently”

4. Surface-Culture Rules Example
It is the third Thursday in November.
What are you going to eat?
In the United States, that date is Thanksgiving.
Depending on your family, you may be eating Turkey,
Ham, or nothing special at all. Even if you don’t celebrate,
you may wish somebody “Happy Thanksgiving”.
“Everybody does it differently”

5. Courtesy * Contextual Conversational Patterns * Concept of Time *
Personal Space * Rules of Conduct * Facial Expressions * NonVerbal Communication * Body Language * Touching * Eye-Contact *
Patterns of Handling Emotions
Deep Culture
Unspoken Rules
Just Below the Surface
Emotional Load: High
Elements of culture that are perhaps not as easily pointed
out, more ingrained into society.
Behavior-based.
“What are you DOING?”

6. Deep Culture
Unspoken Rules Example
You are in a major chain
grocery store (Target, Kmart,
etc), standing in line at the
checkout.
How do you know what to pay
for your items?
In that culture - we don’t
haggle over low-cost, prepriced items. You just pay as
is marked.
BEHAVIOR-BASED
“What are you DOING?”

7. Notions of Modesty * Concept of Beauty * Courtship Practices * Relationships
to Animals * Notions of Leadership * Tempo of Work * Concepts of Food *
Ideals of Childrearing * Theory of Disease * Social Interaction Rate * Nature of
Friendships * Tone of Voice * Attitudes Towards Elders * Concept of
Cleanliness * Notions of Adolescence * Patterns of Group Decision-Making *
Definition of Insanity * Preference for Competition or Cooperation * Tolerance
of Physical Pain * Concept of “self” * Concept of Past and Future * Definition of
Obscenity * Attitudes toward Dependents * Problem-Solving Roles in Relation
to Age, Sex, Class, Occupation, Kinship, and so forth
The things that don’t get talked about, and often times aren’t even realized.
Value-Based.
“You just don’t DO that!”
Deep Culture
Unconscious Rules
Far Below Surface
Emotional Load: INTENSE

8. Deep Culture
Unconscious Rules Example
It is summer and your air conditioning has broken. Your family is lounging
around the house and your children are playing in the family room. It is getting
quite hot.
How do you cool off?
In the United States, you don’t take your clothing off around your children. It
would be considered highly offensive for a father to walk around home
completely naked, no matter how hot.
VALUE-BASED
“You just don’t DO that!”

9. Implicit Culture
An
agent
whom
operates
in
an
environment with poor knowledge behaves
sub optimally. If a group of agents act in the
same environment, information about their
actions can be used to improve the
knowledge and the behavior of each agent.

10. Explicit Culture
Explicit culture is culture out there for
everyone to see, it is not hidden from
anyone. It is the way we dress, worship, act
in society. There is no secret in our explicit
culture.

11. Layers of Culture

12. Layers of culture
• Symbols are words, gestures, pictures or objects
that carry a particular meaning which is only
recognized by those who share the culture. The
words in a language or jargon belong to this
category, as do dress, hairstyles, Coca-Cola,
flags, and status symbols.
• New symbols are easily developed and old ones
disappear: symbols from one cultural group are
regularly copied by others. This is why symbols
have been put into the outer, most superficial
layer of the diagram.

13. • Heroes are persons, alive or dead, real or
imaginary, who possess characteristics which
are highly prized in a culture, and who thus
serve as models for behavior.
• Even fantasy or cartoon figures like Batman or,
as a contrast, Snoopy in the USA [or] Asterix in
France can serve as cultural heroes. In this age
of television, outward appearances have
become more important in the choice of heroes.

14. • Rituals are collective activities, technically
superfluous in reaching desired ends, but which,
within a culture, are considered as socially
essential: they are therefore carried out for their
own sake. Ways of greeting and paying respect
to others, social and religious ceremonies are
examples.
• Business and political meetings organized for
seemingly rational reasons often serve mainly
ritual purposes, like allowing the leaders to
assert themselves.

15. • The core of culture according to the diagram is
formed by values.
• Values are broad tendencies to prefer certain
states of affairs over others. Values are feelings
with an arrow to it: they have a plus and a minus
side.
• The deal with: evil vs. good; dirty vs. clear; ugly
vs. beautiful; unnatural vs. natural; abnormal vs.
normal; paradoxical vs logical; irrational vs.
rational.

16. GROUP 3
Members:
ALCANO, ELSA
BOLDADORA, ROMEL
CORITICO, DARYL JILL
MAPUTOL,GINALYN
JAVIER, JUNALYN
UGOT, ANN JELLAN
NITUDA, CHERRY MAE
SAYAGO, MICHELLE