Some cultural anthropologists study “rites of passage,” which are certain rituals where people transition from one stage of their life to another. The idea of “rites of passage” is very broad and can be applied to rituals in many cultures and in all stages of life from birth to death. An anthropologist decides to use the rite of passage framework to understand how adolescents in a specific tribal culture become recognized as adults.

a. In this context, is the idea of “rites of passage” a theory, a theoretical model, a statistical model, or a visual model?

b. When the anthropologist applies this idea to a specific culture and explains the stages of that culture’s rites of passage, is this a theory, a theoretical model, a statistical model, or a visual model?