Cultural transmission

The question of how cultural competence passes from one mind to another is at the heart of any anthropological theory that seeks to accommodate human psychology. Various currents of cognitive or psychological anthropology—the main focus of this entry—have dealt with cultural transmission in their own way. The field's early emphasis on parenting and attachment, coming from psychoanalysis and popularized by the “culture and personality” movement, has given way to approaches that emphasize the child's own contribution to the collective construction of cultural skills. Social input increasingly appears to be just one ingredient in a mix that also includes evolved skills and proclivities. Studying them might allow us to uncover the roots of our species' exceptional proficiency in passing on lasting traditions