The functionalist principle of social culture is defined by a set of myths and fallacious myths that drive the functionality of society. Its purpose is to maintain a functional comfort zone that fosters the evolution of the culture. The active function is defined by the immune system it establishes to make things work, and the common sense it installs is the population’s mindset. The gravitational force that sustains the society is its archetype, and the culture’s catalyst is its lifestyle.

The research on institutional cultures, developed at The Unicist Research Institute and led by Peter Belohlavek, began in 2001 and concluded in 2024. It involved monitoring the evolution of the cultures of ten countries in America, Europe, Asia, and Africa.

The culture of a society avoids the dissemination of social viruses that affect its functionality.  A social virus is a non-complete entity that disrupts the functionality of a society by substituting the institution’s goals with the personal goals of its members. Social viruses function as fallacious myths, which are beliefs constructed to create a parallel reality that sustains cultures. 

These myths help integrate groups by avoiding the perception of weaknesses but simultaneously degrade the institution by replacing functional evolving actions with fallacious movements or inaction. The multiplication of these viruses requires a context where the culture has a weak immune system. These conditions facilitate the spread and entrenchment of social viruses within a culture.

The purpose of social culture is to create a stable environment that supports the evolution and sustainability of society. This involves maintaining a functional comfort zone where individuals can thrive and society can progress. The active function, or the immune system, is crucial in this context as it ensures that society can adapt to changes and challenges, thereby maintaining its functionality.

The common sense, or the population’s mindset, is another critical component. It reflects the collective understanding and shared beliefs that guide behavior and decision-making within society. This common sense is shaped by the myths and fallacious myths that are prevalent in the culture, influencing how individuals perceive and interact with their environment.

The archetype of a society acts as the gravitational force, providing a foundational framework that shapes the society’s identity and values. It is the underlying structure that holds the society together, guiding its evolution and ensuring its coherence.

The lifestyle of a culture serves as its catalyst, driving change and innovation. It reflects the dynamic aspects of society, including its habits, practices, and ways of living. The lifestyle influences how the society adapts to new circumstances and opportunities, playing a crucial role in its ongoing development.

The Components of Social Culture 

The unicist approach to understanding social culture involves analyzing the interplay between comfort zones, immune systems, common sense,  archetypes, and lifestyles. This approach is grounded in the unicist ontology, which defines things based on their functionality and manages the unified field of adaptive systems to ensure results.

Comfort Zones

Comfort zones are psychological states where individuals feel safe and unchallenged. They are defined by the concepts people hold in their minds, stored in episodic, procedural, and semantic long-term memories. These zones form the habits, customs, and ethics of individuals, establishing patterns of actions and thought processes. There are two types of comfort zones:

• Functional Comfort Zones: These foster evolution by encouraging individuals to respond to unsatisfied needs, thereby promoting personal development and adaptation.
• Stagnated Comfort Zones: These create a parallel reality that insulates individuals from external demands and changes, preventing adaptation and growth.

Immune Systems

In the context of social culture, the immune system is the active function that ensures the society can adapt to changes and challenges. It acts as a protective mechanism, maintaining the functionality of the culture by filtering out harmful influences and integrating beneficial ones. 

Concept of Common Sense

Common sense, within the unicist approach, is the intellectual framework that defines people’s comfort zones and conscious intelligence. It establishes the functional myths that apply to specific fields of action and prevents individuals from venturing into unfamiliar territories. 

Archetypes

The archetype of a society acts as the gravitational force, providing a foundational framework that shapes the society’s identity and values. It is the underlying structure that holds the society together, guiding its evolution and ensuring its coherence. The archetype defines the collective unconscious of society, influencing its norms, beliefs, and behaviors.

Lifestyles

The lifestyle of a culture serves as its catalyst, driving change and innovation. It reflects the dynamic aspects of society, including its habits, practices, and ways of living. It acts as a bridge between the comfort zone and the external environment, facilitating the integration of new elements into the culture.

About Cultural Objects

Culture is established through the actions developed by cultural objects. The comfort zone is influenced by art, the immune system by technologies, commonsense by humor, the evolution of the archetype by laws and regulations, and the lifestyle by the implicit morality introduced by educational systems. Cultural objects are entities that establish the values and functionality of a society. The natural technologies a society uses and their evolution define the functional ideologies and ethics of a society.

Culture and Cultural Objects

Culture is established through the actions developed by cultural objects. These objects are entities that establish the values and functionality of a society. The unicist approach to understanding culture involves analyzing how these cultural objects influence various aspects of society, including comfort zones, immune systems, common sense, archetypes, and lifestyles.

Comfort Zones and Art

The comfort zone of a society is influenced by art. Art shapes the collective imagination and emotional landscape, providing a sense of identity and belonging. It helps individuals and communities to feel safe and understood within their cultural context. Art can challenge existing norms and inspire new ways of thinking, thereby expanding the comfort zone and fostering cultural evolution.

Immune Systems and Technologies

The immune system of a society is influenced by its technologies. Technologies act as protective mechanisms that ensure that society can adapt to changes and challenges. They filter out harmful influences and integrate beneficial ones, maintaining the functionality of the culture. 

Common Sense and Humor

Common sense in a society is influenced by humor. Humor reflects the collective understanding and shared beliefs that guide behavior and decision-making. It can challenge existing norms and highlight absurdities, prompting individuals to reconsider their assumptions. Humor helps to maintain a flexible and adaptive mindset, essential for navigating the complexities of daily life.

Archetypes and Laws

The evolution of the archetype of a society is influenced by laws and regulations. These legal frameworks provide a foundational structure that shapes the society’s identity and values. They act as a gravitational force, holding the society together and directing its development.

Lifestyles and Education

The lifestyle of a society is influenced by the implicit morality introduced by educational systems. Education shapes the habits, practices, and ways of living that define a culture. It instills values and norms that guide behavior, promoting the integration of new elements into the culture. 

The Unicist Research Institute