Form and Function: Implications for Studies of Culture and Human Development

Abstract

Understanding of activity and its meaning is viewed through the prism of context. A given activity often has the same meaning in different contexts, but one activity can also have different meanings across contexts. Conversely, different activities can have different or similar meanings depending on context. A prime context for discussing relations between activity and meaning-that is, between form and function-is culture. Flexible relations between activity and meaning are examined in a unified conceptual scheme, and they are illustrated with phenomena from culture and human development. The heuristic value of this perspective and its implications for studies of culture and human development are also considered.