The advocacy culture has been established over the years as a buffer against the managerial culture. There is also a reliance on numbers—however the source of these numbers and interpretation of what these numbers mean differs significantly from what those in the managerial culture have to offer and what they believe is accurate. Much of the polarization that has been established over the past century involves the rise of the managerial culture (and not just in business) and the counter-rise of the advocacy culture (and not just in labor unions). We find that these two cultures often tear apart legislative debates and produce abundant accusations of misinformation—and even lying on the part of those in the opposing culture.
We come finally to the alternative culture that evolved in many instances as a corrective on the “arrogance” of the professional culture. Those in this fourth culture believe that there are multiple legitimate truths and that forums must be established for constructive dialogue that not only surface these truths but also provide a shared appreciation for these multiple realties. As a culture that attracts idealists and those involved in the helping and mediating professions, it is the one of the original four that is most likely to be ignored or dismissed in a polarized world that is filled with misinformation and lies.
We come now to the fifth and sixth cultures. One of these cultures has been defined as the “virtual culture.” It has emerged in recent years as a result of the impact which technology has had on the way in which we view and act in our mid-21st Century world. The culprit is what has been identified as the “virtual culture”. The sixth culture has evolved (much as in the case of the advocacy and alternative cultures) with the growing influence of the virtual culture. This sixth culture is defined as the “tangible culture” and addresses the desire to “return” to a time when “real” things that can be seen, heard and even touched held sway over our lives. These two emerging cultures speak persuasively to the challenges facing us in mid-21st Century life.
The Virtual Culture
In the Virtual culture there is a much looser grasp on reality. There are not only “alternative truths” populating the Internet, but also multiple criteria for determining what is “true” and what is “false.” Which Internet site do I frequent and which version of reality is displayed on this site. The algorithms of the Internet assist us by pulling us to closely aligned sites. The strange attractors that we have already mentioned are operating no just in physical space but also in the virtual space of the internet.
Virtual technologies have also entered the world of finances and increased the frequency of lies and misinformation. As Dan Areily, p. 34, 37) has observed and demonstrated, it is easier to cheat on our financial dealings when financial reality is at a distance. For example, Ariely (p. 34) notes that our move to a “cashless” society in which credit cards have taken the place of money has led to greater overdrawing of accounts and falsifications of financial transactions. As is often stated in a humorous (but painful) manner: “As long as my credit card doesn’t wear out, I will be OK!” And we are now even talking about bitcoins. At some fundamental level, we recognize that “cashless” transactions lead to a sense that “real money” isn’t being exchanged.
