Culture as a psychological phenomenon, according to Matsumoto, is a set of attitudes, values and beliefs shared by a group of people. This is a learned behavior, so we differently assimilate values, norms. This process is constantly in a change, in motion, in addition. Counterculture is something that exists in opposition to established traditions. One can not unequivocally answer the question whether it has a positive or negative color. History knows many examples when, thanks to this driving force , positive changes took place in the development of entire states. Traditions, norms and rules remain unchanged, established for a long time, any society goes from origin to peak, then to decline. Culture is subject to the same changes. Only with the proviso that when decaying, it may completely disappear. But it can be renewed, and the counterculture is something that can push it to it.
There are many examples. So, in the 60s of the last century a new movement - the hippies - was formed in the West. In opposition to the cult of money, they propagated a cult of simplicity. Gradually jeans entered the fashion, turned from working clothes first into everyday, and then into festive. Instead of loud slogans of conformism, suggesting not to stand out from the crowd, to be "like everyone else", they began to promote the idea that each person is an individuality and should be somehow different from the others. In this case, the counterculture is hippies who not only established new trends in clothing, but also contributed to the changing political situation in the United States. The government of this country everywhere called for help in the struggle against communist Vietnam, the hippies also propagated pacifism, saying that in the world there is only a place of love, not war. It was during this period that many in the West were carried away by reading and comprehending revolutionary literature, Marxism, Che Guevara's ideas, the country was overwhelmed by mass protests, which raised the issue of oppression of the black population, education reforms.
Counterculture is also the movement of punks, which brought leather clothes to fashion trends, in which it was not shameful or shameful to even flaunt the president, coupled with jeans, which was considered unacceptable a couple of decades ago. Female representatives at this time dressed up in mini-skirts, which was considered bad form, since it was not accepted to denude the knees. And during the Wild West, one of the ladies first dressed in pants, which caused bewilderment and discontent of their neighbors. Such small, but necessary victories, which initially caused only condemnation, allow today to choose those wardrobe items that are more like, without fear of oblique glances and misunderstanding.
Changing the stereotypes that have developed over the centuries, the subculture and counterculture have brought their own views to the development of public opinion and consciousness. So, for example, from time immemorial, the brothers-Slavs had the inadmissibility of the appearance in public of a married woman with her hair loose. As you can see, this tradition has sunk into oblivion, largely due to the progressive views of some of the fair sex. It seems that they had to achieve this result very uneasy, for sure at first they were convicted by friends and society for such a brave act.
Culture, subculture, counterculture are in close interconnection. There are new movements, currents, stereotypes break down, people cease to be an impersonal gray mass, they try to declare themselves differently. Some - with the help of clothing, others - putting forward new ideas and slogans.