Intercultural Anthropology - Exam #1 Study Guide

Anthropology

The study of humans across time and space

Holistic Perspective

Studying humans by looking at all apsects together

Four subfields of anthropology

biological

archeological

cultural

linguistic

Archeology

Study of human past through artifacts

Cultural Anthropology

Study of living cultures and behavior

Linguistic Anthropology

Study of language and culture

Biocultural appraoch

Studying interaction between between biology and culture

Applied Anthropology

Using and anthropology to solve real-world problems

Basic ANthropology

Research for knowledge without immidiate use

Ethnolinguistics Study

Study of language language in cultural context

Linguistic Relativity

Language influences how people think

Linguistic Profusion

Existence of many languages

Ethnography

In-depth study of a culture through fieldwork

Ethnology

Comparing cultures to find patterns

Bronislaw Malinowski

Anthropologist known for participant obervation

Participant Observation

Living with and observing a culture

Fieldwork

Collecting data firsthand in a culture

Reflexivity

Awareness of researchers impact

Culture Shock

Disorientation in a new culture

Reverse Culture Shock

Difficulty returning to own culture

Franz Boas

Anthropologist who prompted cultural relativism

Cultural Relativism

Judging a culture by its own standards

Ethnocentrism

Judging other cultures by your own standards

Unilineal Evolution

The idea that cultures develop in one path

Salvage Anthropology

Recording cultures before they disappear

Psychic Unity

All humans share the same mental capacity

Goldschmidt’s criteria

Ways to evaluate cultures

Culture

Learned, shared, symbolic system of beliefs and behaviors

Enculturation

Learning your culture

Shared Culture

Group members have common understandings

Symbolic Culture

Based on symbols with meaning

Symbolic Arbitrariness

Symbols have meaning because people agree

Integrated Culture

All parts of culture are connected

Objective Reality

Reality independent of beliefs

Subjective Reality

Reality shaped by beliefs

World Openness

Humans can adapt and change

World Closedness

Culture limits thinks

Three aspects of culture

material

social

cognitive

Material aspects of culture

Physical objects and basic needs

Social aspects of culture

Society organization (roles, status)

Cognitive aspects of culture

Beliefs and values

Ascribed status

Status given at birth

Achieved Status

Status earned

Fieldwork ethics

Rules for responsible research

Core Values

Shared beliefs within a culture