Answer:
One of the major culture theories in anthropology is Cultural Materialism, developed by Marvin Harris in the mid-20th century. This theory views culture as a means to solve the practical problems of survival, such as acquiring food, shelter, and material goods. Cultural Materialism also sees people as rational beings who use their culture to optimize their chances of survival and to increase their standard of living.
According to this theory, cultural practices and beliefs are analyzed in terms of their adaptive value and their role in meeting the material needs of a society. The theory argues that cultural beliefs and practices can be explained in terms of the technological, economic, and ecological conditions of a society. For example, the development of agriculture and the domestication of animals are seen as cultural innovations that allowed people to increase their food supply and security, which in turn led to population growth and the development of more complex societies.
Cultural Materialism also recognizes that different societies have different solutions to similar problems, which leads to cultural diversity. The theory does not see cultural diversity as a product of individual creativity or artistic expression, but rather as a result of the different historical and material conditions that societies face.
The benefits that Cultural Materialism offers to the understandings sought by anthropologists include its focus on material and ecological factors as the basis for cultural practices and beliefs, its recognition of cultural diversity, and its explanation of how cultural practices and beliefs are adapted to meet the practical needs of survival. This theory provides a useful framework for understanding the relationships between cultural beliefs and practices, and the ecological and economic conditions that shape them.