In sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a group of people with a culture (whether distinct or hidden) which differentiates them from the larger culture to which they belong. If a particular subculture is characterized by a systematic opposition to the dominant culture, it may be described as a counterculture.

As early as 1950, David Riesman distinguished between a majority, "which passively accepted commercially provided styles and meanings, and a 'subculture' which actively sought a minority style ... and interpreted it in accordance with subversive values". In his 1979 book Subculture the Meaning of Style, Dick Hebdige argued that a subculture is a subversion to normalcy. He wrote that subcultures can be perceived as negative due to their nature of criticism to the dominant societal standard. Hebdige argued that subcultures bring together like-minded individuals who feel neglected by societal standards and allow them to develop a sense of identity.

In 1995, Sarah Thornton, drawing on Pierre Bourdieu, described "subcultural capital" as the cultural knowledge and commodities acquired by members of a subculture, raising their status and helping differentiate themselves from members of other groups. Ken Gelder argued in 2007 that subcultures are social, with their own shared conventions, values and rituals, but they can also seem "immersed" or self-absorbed; a feature that distinguishes them from countercultures. Gelder identified six key ways in which subcultures can be understood:

1. through their often negative relations to work (as 'idle', 'parasitic', at play or at leisure, etc.);
2. through their negative or ambivalent relation to class (since subcultures are not 'class-conscious' and don't conform to traditional class definitions);
3. through their association with territory (the 'street', the 'hood, the club, etc.), rather than property;
4. through their movement out of the home and into non-domestic forms of belonging (i.e. social groups other than the family);
5. through their stylistic ties to excess and exaggeration (with some exceptions);
6. through their refusal of the banalities of ordinary life and massification.

• Directories (5)

• Anti Social (12)
• Bikers (103)
• Burning Man@ (136)
• Cyberculture (146)
• Emo (21)
• Gamers@ (3,216)
• Geeks and Nerds (47)
• Gothic (345)
• Hip-Hop (211)
• Hippie (30)
• Industrial (5)

• Lounge Culture (25)
• Mod (22)
• Nudists@ (722)
• Polyamory@ (68)
• Punk (100)
• Rave (124)
• Skinhead (3)
• Spotters (14)
• Straight Edge (18)
• Urban Primitive (10)

See also:

• Arts: Visual Arts: Public Art: Street Art: Guerrilla Art (24)
• Shopping: Niche (863)
• Society: Lifestyle Choices (624)

• Subkultures.net
  subkultures.net
  Online community for people who don't feel part of the mainstream. Hosts sites for individuals.
• Mind Space
  mindspace.org
  Virtual community formed to discuss a sustainable future, reality selection, surrounding philosophies, cyber culture, literature, alternative lifestyles and viewpoints, freedom of information, music, and psychedelics.