intro to cultural anthropology + culture

ethnocentrism

one’s own culture is MOST IMPORTANT AND CORRECT compared to all other cultures

participant observation

anthropologist PERSONALLY experiences who they’re observing

holism approach

a THEORY that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

holistic approach

PRACTICAL APPLICATION of the theory to studying entireties rather than individual components

cultural anthropology

holistic approach that covers many aspects/topics of culture

• CULTURE IS LEARNED AND EXPERIENCED DIFFERENTLY

ethnography

process and results of cultural anthropological research—observe passively to not disrupt their work

ex: interviews, participant observation, fieldworks

inductive reasoning

moving from specific instances to a broader generalization, forming conclusion thats NOT guaranteed

ex: traffic is heavy at 8AM = makes a generalized observation where i have to ALWAYS leave earlier in the morning

näive realism

belief that PEOPLE EVERYWHERE IS THE SAME

cultural realism

SEEK TO UNDERSTAND ANOTHER’S belief and behaviors from their culture

armchair experts

someone who believes theyre an expert WITHOUT any practical experiences —> relied on OTHER EXPERIENCES

cultural evolutionism

fixed stages of societal development

‘savagery’ —> ‘barbarism’ —> ‘civilization’

enculturation

culture is learned, consciously and unconsciously

informants/interlocutros/cultural consultants

people who teach ethnographers about culture = SHARING CULTURAL KNOWLEDGE

structuralism

analyzes human culture and behavior by identifying UNCONSCIOUS SYSTEMS that shape meaning and understanding WITHIN CULTURE

field site

LOCATION of research

field notes

DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS of ethnographic observations + experiences

emic perspective (insider)

description of behaviors/beliefs in terms that are MEANINGFUL TO PEOPLE WHO BELONG TO THAT CULTURE

etic perspective (outsider)

descriptions of behaviors/beliefs by an OUTSIDER OBSERVER THAT ARE MEANINGFUL TO THE OBSERVER

explicit culture

DIRECTLY OBSERVABLE, openly expressed and easily articulated aspects of a culture

implicit/tacit culture

UNSPOKEN, unwritten norms and understandings that are learned through experiences and observations

polyrocal

including MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES/VOICES

thick description

includes emic and etic perspectives —> understanding and including anthropological interpretations

cultural relativism

the ability to understand a culture on its own terms and not to make judgements using standards of OWN culture