ABSTRACT
A fundamental assumption of Cultural Models Theory is that the locus of culture is the mind of the individual. The preliminary hypothesis about a cultural model of Nature can be refined and/or confirmed by the results of the analyses of cognitive data. The cultural model she presents suggests that the major components of Nature are related to each other holistically. All primary food producers hold views—mostly out-of-awareness, as most of our knowledge is—about nature and the physical environment, particularly in terms of how they are affected by and must adapt to changes in the latter. One of the most widely accepted ways of understanding the organization of knowledge in the mind is that of mental models. When a mental model comes to be shared within a community, then one calls it a ‘cultural model’. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
