Which term describes the complete set of learned and socially transmitted behaviors?

Prepare for the CLEP Sociology Exam. Access flashcards and multiple choice questions with detailed explanations and hints. Enhance your readiness for the exam day!

The term that describes the complete set of learned and socially transmitted behaviors is culture. Culture encompasses the values, beliefs, customs, practices, norms, and artifacts that characterize a particular group or society. It includes language, art, religion, social habits, and various forms of expression that are passed down through generations, influencing how individuals understand and interact with the world around them.

Culture functions as a framework within which social life operates, shaping individual identity and facilitating social cohesion. This concept highlights the importance of social learning in forming the behaviors that define groups or communities, distinguishing one culture from another.

The other options, while related to concepts within sociology, do not encapsulate the entirety of behaviors and practices as comprehensively as culture does. Credentialism, for example, refers specifically to the emphasis placed on formal qualifications and educational credentials in social and economic contexts. Cultural transmission pertains specifically to the way culture is passed on from one generation to the next but does not fully represent the broad spectrum of learned behaviors. Counterculture involves groups that reject and oppose the dominant cultural norms, which represents only a specific aspect of cultural dynamics rather than the entirety of learned behaviors in society.

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