Culture is often understood as a linear development passed on through time from one generation to the next. In traditional societies this is still the case. Children are like their parents and grandparents when it comes to basic values.

Modern societies break with this linear reproduction model and generate lateral cultures, whereby a unique set of values and lifestyle is adopted by those belonging to a given epoch. This may continue to thrive for 10, 20 or 30 years.

Such culture formation can be seen in many of the societies of the present. Cultures grasp a space of their own which frees them from the constraints of linear reproduction institutions. One example is those socialised in the 1960s and 1970s, who have formed a cultural identity distinct from their predecessors with values of conservation, anti-waste, sympathy for other animals and the environment, and relationships of co-operation between people. This culture exists within the more dominant, traditionally-defined culture of waste, over-consumption, extinction, competition and exploitation.

Prior epochs in modern societies also had their unique lateral cultures existing within the historically-defined cultures. They aimed to create a different basis for society than that which had been automatically done based on past practices. Culture then becomes creative and challenging. Often these lateral cultures are transnational, whereas traditional cultures are defined by geographic location. Reflective cultures have generally dissipated again when their members have passed on, only achieving their aims in the short-term and in a limited way for those who are around at the time. Traditional cultures survive until the practices they support destroy the basis of the life they define.