Material Culture is the man made physical objects used by society. The physical objects of a culture help to outline the way its members behave and perceive things. Computers are a material culture.
Americans use computers in our everyday lifestyle. Americans use these types of technology to learn and to become successful. In another cultures they do not have such a string focus on computers as we do. Non-material culture is the unseen or not physical aspects of a society. Non-material is that which a culture uses to shape its members' thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.They can be broken up into five different categories symbols, language, norms, values, and beliefs.
My Christianity can be considered a non-material belief. I have faith in God and believe that he is the reason for the outcomes of many situations even though I cannot see him. In other cultures they do not believe in God and they believe in something they can physically see. Cooley believed that most important kinds of socialization took place in primary groups like the family and friendship groups.Cooley most notable theories was the theory of the “looking-glass self. Although it is called looking glass self I do not think it is anything like a true mirror.
The looking-glass self refers to a self-perception on how we think others see us. Cooley used the term “looking-glass self” to emphasize that the self is the product of our social interactions. Mead believed that socialization consisted of self-awareness and self-image, he called these the “I” and the “me”. The “me” is the self as an object and the “I” is ones unique response.
Although I think both concepts were extremely important to the evolution of socialization, I agree more with the concepts of Cooley.
