Cultual contamination is the alteration of a culture's natural development. Of particular concern is earily contact with a pre-warp civilization. However, any violation of the Prime Directive can contaminate a culture by way of external interruption. Cultural contamination can be sociological or technological.
- The main concern seems to be avoiding any interaction that would limit the galactic diversity.
Observer teams make use of specialized equipment to avoid earily first contact for this reason.