Ethos

noun: beliefs or character of a group

1.) Sociology. the fundamental character or spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group or society; dominant assumptions of a people or period: In the Greek ethos the individual was highly valued.

2. the character or disposition of a community, group, person, etc.

3. the moral element in dramatic literature that determines a character's action rather than his or her thought or emotion.

It is the Boy Scouts' ethos that one should always be prepared.

Synonyms: culture, ethic, philosophy