Our hope is that you utilize this booklet as a companion in your
travels, a reference for your work and use it often to remind you of the
wonderful complexities of human cultures.

"Understanding human needs is half the job of meeting them."

- Adlai E. Stevenson Jr.

• • What is the purpose of clothing in the culture?
  • What types of clothing do people wear?
• • Do men dress differently from women?
  • Rich from poor?
  • Uniforms?
• • Can everyone afford clothing?
  • If not, do people cover themselves?
  • If so, how much clothing do people own?
• • Is fabric made locally or imported?
  • How available is fabric?
  • Types, prices?
• • How is clothing cleaned?
  • How often?
• Do people wear shoes?

• • How is eating viewed?
  • Does it have any special meaning other than for nutrition?
• How is the food prepared?
• • What kinds of foods are eaten?
  • Does everyone eat the same food items?
  • Men/women, rich/poor?
• • Are there courses to a meal?
  • What courses of a meal are always eaten?
  • Rarely eaten?
• • Is the importance or lack of importance of dessert in a meal linked to views of eating and weight?
  • If so, how?

• • What food distribution methods or centers are used?
  • Grocery stores, markets, homes?
• • How are these distribution methods viewed socially in the society?
  • Are they places where people meet daily or talk about daily life?
• • Who purchases food?
  • How often?
• • Is fast food available?
  • How much?
  • What does this tell you?

• How technically advanced is the food production system?
• Is food produced in automated factories or in individual production processes?
• What percentage of the population works in the farming industry?
• What effect does this have on such things as economy, government, politics, social habits?
• How are people who work in food production viewed?
• How financially successful are these people?

• • Who administers health care?
  • Doctors, medicine men/women. How does this title affect the qualifications of the healthcare provider?
• Do healthcare providers specialize in certain types of medicine or is each responsible for all types?
• Are there shortages of particular types of healthcare providers or medical expertise?
• • How is medical training acquired?
  • Who can get medical training?
• What role does medical training play in medical practices?

• Do the hospitals have enough capacity to meet the demand?
• Where are the hospitals located?
• What is the effect of these locations?
• How do people get to hospitals in an emergency?
• • Are hospitals effective for the general population?
  • Or only for the wealthy, insured, prominent?

• How is a person’s living space defined?
• • Do people share their living space with immediate family, extended family?
  • Friends, strangers?
• • Is there a bathroom inside the living space?
  • Does it serve sanitation as well as hygienic purposes?
• • Does the living space include an area for food preparation and storage?
  • Where do these activities take place?
• • Is there furniture in the living space?
  • What types?
  • Where and how is furniture obtained?

• • What types of medicines are available?
  • What are the consequences of this availability or lack of availability?
• Is modern medicine promoted, feared, shunned?
• Are herbal remedies preferred?
• • How are medicines distributed?
  • Is this distribution method available to all?
• What is the average life expectancy?
• Are means such as medical prevention used to prolong life?
• • How is death viewed?
  • Is it celebrated, feared?

• How available is food to the general population?
• Is nutrition a large concern such as malnutrition or over eating?
• Is nutrition a widespread concern or does it concern only a small, impoverished population?
• Is famine a widespread concern or does it concern only a small, impoverished population?
• • What foods are considered nutritious?
  • Why?

• • Is protection needed?
  • From whom/what?
• Is protection provided by the government?
• • What methods of protection are used?
  • Weapons, martial arts?
• • Are there laws about protecting oneself?
  • What type of self protection is acceptable?
• • If there is law enforcement?
  • How is it organized?
  • Who runs it?
  • How effective is it?
• • Is it safe or socially acceptable to travel alone?
  • For men, women, children, the elderly?

• How often do people bath?
• What are the views of cleanliness and what factor does soap play?
• Do artifacts such as soap have a history in that area/nation?
• • How does the society handle garbage?
  • Does the way people handle garbage affect politics and tourism?

• What are most of the living shelters made from?
• • What is the average size of a shelter?
  • How does this affect people’s interactions?
• • How often do people move from shelter to shelter?
  • What does this suggests about the social and economic conditions?

• • Near what geographical elements do people build shelters?
  • Water, forests, caves?
• • Is it common for people to live near their husband's families?
  • Wife's families?
  • Other people not associated with the family?
• • Are there rural and urban areas?
  • Are the types of shelter and people who live in these areas different?

• Do people usually buy existing shelters or build their shelters themselves?
• • Who owns the land on which the shelters are built?
  • Can land be rented?
  • How?
• • Does community housing exist?
  • Who owns these buildings?
  • Who lives in them?
• • How much does the average person spend on housing?
  • What type of shelter does that amount get them?

• What are the typical sleep patterns of the culture?
• • Does some of the population work at night and sleep during the day?
  • Are naps common?
• • Where do people sleep?
  • On the floor?
  • In beds?
  • In what part of their living space?
• • Do people sleep together or alone?
  • Is there specific clothing people wear to bed?
• Are there rituals in the culture related to sleep?

• How well is water purified and how does this affect people’s health?
• • How available is water?
  • How much do people use each day?
• How do the environment and climate affect the use of water?