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 By discussing cultural evolution, we are flirting with some dangerous beliefs: racism, ethnocentrism, and nativism. Remember, in the decades following the release of Darwin's Origin of Species, Herbert Spencer, a British biologist and social philosopher, created Social Darwinism. I trust that we've all heard of Social Darwinism, but to summarize, it promoted the idea that human cultures have evolved so that superior, more intelligent societies have rightfully dominated lesser peoples. Of course, this view was adopted largely by the wealthy, white population, who could justify colonialism, the subjugation of minorities, and exploitative labor laws with the Social Darwinist implication that the poor or nonwhites were unfit for equality. 

Lest you think that Social Darwinism was a brief phase, recall that it bred the eugenics movement of the early 20th century. The largest example of eugenics might be the Holocaust, where Adolf Hitler authorized the extermination of some 6 million Jews, and millions more Poles, Slavs, and Roma - minorities deemed too unfit to live. On a smaller scale, the U.S. participated in eugenics, sterilizing the mentally and physically handicapped so that they could not reproduce.

What's my point? When we focus on cultural evolution, we must be mindful of a key point - no culture is superior. We might be tempted to call our society "superior," or more evolved, because we have a larger population and an array of technology. But that is superficial. All cultures evolved. Yes, some cultures have evolved differently from others, but each adapted to meet its needs with the resources it had available. No culture that has survived into modernity is primitive, backward, or unsophisticated. If we begin to think of cultures in terms of "modern vs. primitive," or "advanced vs. limited," then we fail to recognize the importance of every culture, and the influence culture has had on humanity's development. 

Postscript: To respond to the prompt, I don't know if cultural change has patterns or explanations. I do know, however, that the way we perceive culture has a pattern. We are often made uncomfortable by the unfamiliar, so we seek to eliminate it or make it conform to our norms. (Por ejemplo: How did the Spanish conquistadors handle the "savage," pagan Aztecs? 1.) Convert them 2.) Kill them )

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