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Activity as a Key Concept for Cultural Psychology

Humboldt State University, USA

This paper articulates a concept of culture as practical, socially organized human activity. Culture is not simply shared conceptual understandings, as many cultural psychologists believe. The manner in which cultural activity organizes psychological functions is explored in detail. The reciprocal influence of psychological functions on culture is also described.

Key Words: activity • cultural psychology • dialectics • praxis • social structure

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