Culture is an extremely popular and increasingly overused term in contemporary society. Expressions such as cultural differences, cultural diversity, multiculturalism, corporate culture, cross-culture, and other variations continually appear in the popular media.
Culture has been linked to such fields as corporate management, health care, psychology, education, public relations, marketing, and advertising. We often hear about U.S. forces operating in Afghanistan with insufficient knowledge and understanding of the local culture. The pervasive use of the term culture attests to the increased awareness of the role it plays in our everyday activities. Seldom, however, are we given a definition of just what constitutes culture or exactly what culture does. This section will provide that information.