Human Geography 101: Cultural Geography - Cultural Diffusion Relocation Expansion Contagious Hierarchical Stimulus

What This Is

Cultural diffusion is the process by which ideas, technologies, languages, and cultural practices spread from one place to another. This concept is crucial for understanding how people and places are shaped by global interactions and how cultural diversity emerges. For example, the spread of Christianity from Europe to the Americas is a classic case of cultural diffusion, where the faith was introduced by European colonizers and eventually adopted by indigenous populations.

Key Models, Theories & Terms

• Relocation Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies from one place to another through the movement of people, such as the migration of farmers from China to the United States and the introduction of new crops like rice and soybeans.
• Expansion Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies from one place to another through various means, such as trade, migration, or media, like the global spread of the internet and social media.
• Contagious Diffusion: The rapid spread of ideas or technologies through face-to-face contact, such as the spread of a new fashion trend or a disease.
• Hierarchical Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies from a central location to surrounding areas, such as the spread of a new technology from a city to surrounding towns.
• Stimulus Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies in response to a stimulus, such as the introduction of a new technology that prompts the adoption of other related technologies.
• Diffusion of Innovations: The process by which new ideas or technologies are adopted by a population, such as the adoption of solar panels in a community.
• Cultural Landscape: The visible representation of a culture's values, beliefs, and practices, such as the architecture of a city or the layout of a farm.
• Acculturation: The process by which a culture is influenced by another culture, such as the adoption of Western customs by indigenous cultures in the Americas.
• Assimilation: The process by which a minority culture is absorbed into a dominant culture, such as the assimilation of immigrant groups into the dominant culture of a country.

Step-by-Step Application

1. Identify the type of diffusion: Is it relocation, expansion, contagious, hierarchical, or stimulus diffusion?
2. Analyze the context: What is the cultural practice or technology being diffused, and what is the social, economic, or environmental context in which it is being spread?
3. Consider the agents of diffusion: Who or what is responsible for spreading the cultural practice or technology, such as individuals, groups, or media?
4. Evaluate the impact: How is the cultural practice or technology affecting the people and places involved, such as changing social norms or economic systems?
5. Draw a cultural landscape: Visualize the cultural practice or technology as a part of the broader cultural landscape, such as a map of a city with different cultural zones.

Common Misconceptions

• Misconception: All migration is permanent.
• Correction: Not all migration is permanent, as people may move temporarily for work, education, or other reasons.
• Example: Seasonal migration of workers from rural areas to cities for work.
• Misconception: GDP per capita is the same as standard of living.
• Correction: GDP per capita only measures economic output, not the quality of life or well-being of a population.
• Example: A country with a high GDP per capita may still have a low standard of living due to income inequality or poor social services.
• Misconception: Rank-size rule applies to every country.
• Correction: The rank-size rule only applies to certain types of cities, such as those with a single central business district.
• Example: A city with multiple business districts or a decentralized economy may not follow the rank-size rule.

AP Exam / Free-Response Tips

• FRQ Scoring: FRQs are scored on the basis of content, organization, and writing quality.
• Task Verbs: Identify, describe, explain, compare, and analyze are common task verbs on FRQs.
• Tricky Distinctions: Be able to distinguish between concepts like ethnicity and nationality, site and situation, and centripetal and centrifugal forces.
• Integrating Models: Use models like the diffusion of innovations or the cultural landscape to explain and analyze cultural practices and technologies.

Quick Practice Scenario

A megacity in a developing country grows rapidly as rural residents move in for factory jobs. Identify the dominant migration pattern and one likely urban model that describes its structure.

Answer: The dominant migration pattern is relocation diffusion, and one likely urban model is the Burgess concentric zone model, which describes the city's structure as a series of concentric zones with different land uses and social classes.

Last-Minute Cram Sheet

• Relocation Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies through the movement of people.
• Expansion Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies through various means, such as trade, migration, or media.
• Contagious Diffusion: The rapid spread of ideas or technologies through face-to-face contact.
• Hierarchical Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies from a central location to surrounding areas.
• Stimulus Diffusion: The spread of ideas or technologies in response to a stimulus.
• Diffusion of Innovations: The process by which new ideas or technologies are adopted by a population.
• Cultural Landscape: The visible representation of a culture's values, beliefs, and practices.
• Acculturation: The process by which a culture is influenced by another culture.
• Assimilation: The process by which a minority culture is absorbed into a dominant culture.
• Rank-Size Rule: A rule that describes the relationship between the size of a city and its rank in a hierarchy of cities.
• GDP per capita: A measure of economic output per person in a population.
• Standard of living: A measure of the quality of life or well-being of a population.
• Ethnicity: A shared cultural identity based on ancestry, language, or customs.
• Nationality: A shared citizenship or membership in a nation-state.
• Site: A physical location or place.
• Situation: The social, economic, or environmental context in which a site is located.
• Centripetal forces: Forces that pull people or resources towards a central location.
• Centrifugal forces: Forces that push people or resources away from a central location.