The major elements of culture are symbols, language, norms, values, artifacts, and belief systems. Symbols represent cultural ideas and evoke emotions. Language builds community. Norms define what is considered normal behavior. Values guide human actions. Artifacts constitute material culture. Belief systems help interpret reality. Filipino culture values family, humor, flexibility, faith, and respect for elders. However, it also exhibits the negative traits of fatalism, procrastination, crab mentality, lack of self-discipline, and disregard for punctuality.

1. Elements
of
Culture

2. The Major Elements of Culture
Symbols,
Language,
Norms,
Values,
Artifacts.

3. Symbols
 Symbols are the basis of culture. A symbol is an
object, word, or action that stands for something else
with no natural relationship that is culturally
defined. Everything one does throughout their life is
based and organized through cultural symbolism.
 Every culture is filled with symbols, or things that
stand for something else and that often evoke
various reactions and emotions. Some symbols are
actually types of nonverbal communication, while
other symbols are in fact material objects.

4.  Language is one of the most important parts of any
culture. It is the way by which people communicate
with one another, build relationships, and create a
sense of community
 Most cultures are brought together by a common
language and way of speaking.
 But even within languages (like English or French)
there are regional dialects. And this is often where
cultures express themselves most.
Languages

5. Norms
 Norms are a fundamental concept in the social sciences.
They are most commonly defined as rules or expectations
that are socially enforced.
 Every culture has its own norms. Norms comes from the
same origin as the word ‘normal’. Our cultural norms are
the things we do that seem normal or natural within our
culture.
 But different cultures will have different norms. That’s why
in your own culture you may feel comfortable and
completely ‘normal’, but when you travel to another
culture, you might seem a little strange!

6. Values
 Values are individual beliefs that motivate people
to act one way or another. They serve as a guide for
human behavior. Generally, people are
predisposed to adopt the values that they are
raised with. People also tend to believe that those
values are “right” because they are the values of
their particular culture.
 Many cultures coalesce around a certain set of
values. In the West, individual liberty has been a
central cultural marker since the enlightenment.

7. Artifacts
 The last element of culture is the artifacts, or
material objects, that constitute a society’s
material culture.
 In the most simple societies, artifacts are
largely limited to a few tools, the huts people
live in, and the clothing they wear.

8. Beliefs
in
the
System

9.  A belief system is an ideology or set of
principles that helps us to interpret our
everyday reality. This could be in the form of
religion, political affiliation, philosophy, or
spirituality, among many other things.
 A belief system is a set of beliefs or
principles that helps us interpret our
everyday reality, understand, organize, and
make sense of the world.

10. Filipino Characteristics
(Attitude Positive & Negative)

11. Positive Characteristic
of Filipinos

12.  The family
 Filipinos are known to have strong family ties. This is
why it’s common to see different generations or
multiple families living in a single residence.
 The family is at the center of the Filipino community.
Children are not expected to leave their parents’
house until they get married. Even after then, many
couples opt to stay with or close to their or their
spouse’s parents.

13.  Humor and positivity
 Filipinos love celebrations and festivities. The
country has a long list of national holidays, and
many provinces and cities have their own sets of
local holidays. Meanwhile, they still find quality time
for their families to celebrate birthdays, Christmases,
and other instances.
 At the same time, in the face of difficult or
challenging situations, members of the community
are encouraged to look at the brighter side of things

14.  Flexibility and adaptability
 The term bahala na, which can be translated to “whatever
happens, happens,” is one of the more familiar phrases
used in the country.
 It is perhaps the most representative of how Filipinos
value adaptability and quick thinking. The expression
exemplifies one’s belief in a higher power and submitting
one’s fate to elements that cannot be controlled.
 People who use the term bahala na do not see anything
wrong with it, as it serves as a sort of positive affirmation
that allows them to deal with a problem right then and
there

15.  Faith and religion
 Spirituality is deeply embedded in the Filipino
culture. A form of animism was already being
practiced in many pre-colonial societies and Islam
has been firmly established in the southern islands
even before the pre-Hispanic era.
 These days, religion still plays a big part in society
and the everyday lives of Filipinos.

16.  Respect for the elderly
 Filipinos have high regard for their elderly, including
their parents. Even young adults still practice taking
their elders’ hands and saying “mano po” when they
arrive at their homes.
Industrious attitude
 Another one of the great characteristics of Filipinos
is their being resourceful and industrious. They are
determined to finish their set goals despite difficult
circumstances and limited resources.

17. Negative Characteristic
of Filipinos

18.  “Bahala na” Attitude
 Roughly translated as “come what may”, this is
the Filipinos’ own version of fatalism, the belief
of trusting in Divine providence or leaving
everything to the hands of fate. It is a Filipino’s
way of avoiding rationalization or good reason,
While this trait can sometimes be helpful in
time of adversity, the mentality of “ what goes
around, comes around,” can also keep us from
finding ways out of tough situations.

19.  Procrastination or “Mañana Habit “
 This is the Filipino habit of leaving for tomorrow
what can be done today. They tend to postpone
their actions for a later time thus reducing
accomplishments.
 Filipinos are fond of saying “bukas na lang” or “sa
susunod na lang” due to laziness. This arises from
a slack mentality that a problem will eventually go
away by itself.

20.  Crab Mentality
 Filipinos tend to possess this mentality especially
when they feel insecure. In a way, crab mentality
also promotes an unhealthy competition.
 Instead of doing things that could help one to
develop and become better than his competitors,
Filipinos devote so much of their time gossiping
and back-biting. It is their way of deviating
people’s attention on their inadequacy by focusing
on other people’s faults.

21.  Lack of self- discipline
 We have laws and regulations in order to achieve a harmonious
community. However, most Filipinos have this penchant of
disregarding the rules in order to prioritize what they want.
 There’s a theory that explains why Filipinos lack discipline or fail to
implement rules, and it is something that is ingrained in our very
culture. Being oppressed by various colonizers for such a long time
made our ancestors defiant of the rules they believed to be
discriminatory; thus, creating a mentality of “self-righteous
disobedience.” This is reflected on how Filipinos break laws to save
time. For example, even when a signage clearly says ‘No
Jaywalking’, Filipinos will still choose to cross the fatal road because
it’s more convenient and for them “righteous” to cross there.

22.  Filipino Time
 ‘Related to the mañana habit, Filipino time refers to
the Filipinos’ own unique brand of time, which is
known to be minutes or hours behind the scheduled
or standard time. This behaviour drives time-
observant foreigners to get frustrated because
 Filipinos tend not to observe punctuality at all. It’s a
dreadful habit that needs to be stopped as it hinders
productivity and progress. Not to mention that
you’re not only wasting your own time but other
people’s time as well