anthro final

What do medical anthropologists study?

medical knowledge and the system to understand factors that influence health, well-being, experience & treatment of illness

What are their focus and basic premises?

examines how social, cultural, and environmental factors shape individual health. basic premise that illness and disease are culturally constructed, meaning that culture determines how they're understood, experienced, and treated.

How do they view the relationship between culture, biomedicine, and other healing systems?

• Mind and body are connected.

• Culture influences healing.

• Biomedicine is dominant but not the only valid healing system.

According to Fadiman, what are the major cultural differences/conflicts in understanding and treating Lia's epilepsy?

1. caused by soul loss while doctors believed it was a medical condition affecting the brain

2. wanted to focus healing the soul while doctors wanted to treat the body with medicine

3. spirtual meaning vs illness

4. language barrier

Is a middle way or a compromised approach possible in yourview? Why or why not?

Yes

1. Both parties wanted the best for Lia

2. Doctors could have respected the Hmong's wishes and followed their traditional healing path

3. Combine both cultural practice medicine and western medicine to improve Lia's care

How is unequal power relationship articulated in Lia's medical journey? (Discuss three examples from the book)

1. Social Services took Lia away because they thought Lia's parents were not following medical instructions

2. English vs Hmong: language barriers, poverty, Hmong did not always understand how the systems in America work

3. Lia's parents were expected to follow western medical treatments to keep custody of lia

What important lessons have you learned from Fadiman's book?

1. language barriers can lead to alot of misunderstandings

2. cultural beliefs can affect how people understand treatment and illness

Why did the Hmong flee Laos?

The Hmong helped the United States fight communists during the Vietnam War's Secret War. After the U.S. withdrew, many faced persecution in Laos and fled as refugees.

After arriving in the U.S. as refugees, what kinds of help and obstacles did the Hmong encounter?

1. language & education barriers

2. racism

3. poverty

4. change of culture

Globalization

the process in which capital, labor, technology, media, and ideas on the local and national levels become connected to other nations on a larger scale through production, finance, and trade.

Localization

the process by which global social, economic, and cultural influences are adapted and expressed differently in local communities and cultures.

Give two brief examples of increased

global interconnections.

-online markets and capitalism online

-how other economies are affected by the U.S. economy; 2007 U.S. economic downturn

Discuss at least three factors that have contributed to the formation of a global economy

1. modern communication and tech development, internet

2. large companies that operate at international level and use standardized management and business practices worldwide

3. Countries that were communist began using capitalist economic systems and joined the global economy.

Based on the film The True Cost, what are the benefits and costs of a global economy?

benefits: clothes and products becoming cheaper for consumers, companies can produce goods more effectively,

costs: low wage and unsafe conditions, fast fashion creates enviornmental waste and pollution, local/small business and communites may suffer

According to Ajun Appadurai, what are the five dimensions of global cultural flow today? Explain each briefly.

Ethnoscapes, technoscapes, finances, mediascapes, ideoscapes

Ethnoscapes

Movement of people across borders (migrants, refugees, tourists, workers).

Technoscapes

Movement of technology across countries (machines, tools, internet systems).

finances

Flow of money and capital globally (investments, global markets, banking systems).

Mediascapes

Flow of information and images through media (TV, social media, news, internet).

Ideoscapes

Flow of ideas, beliefs, and ideologies (political ideas, values like democracy or freedom).

What are global cities?

- major urban centers with large amounts of economic and financial power that help control the global economy

- serves as important hubs for international finance, trade, and business.

-examples include Tokyo, London, New York City, Paris, and Bangkok

Global Cities characteristics

-High levels of international business and financial activity.

- Strong connections and transactions between major cities worldwide.

- Growing similarities among global cities.

-sharp contrasts between the rich and poor

What does James Ferguson mean by global disconnect and abjection? Use Zambia'sCopperbelt region as an example in your discussion.

Global disconnect: Globalization can exclude places and people, not just connect them.

Example: Zambia's Copperbelt was once connected to the global economy through copper production.

-copper prices fell & the region lost its economic importance and became disconnected from the global economy.

Abjection: The feeling of being pushed out or excluded from a world you once belonged to.

-Copperbelt workers felt they were not just poor, but had been abandoned and stripped of their former status.

-They experienced humiliation and felt like they had become "second-class" after once being part of the modern global economy.

What are the particular circumstances why "knowledge from the South" is relevant for climate policy generation? (Cristobal's presentation).

-The Global South is one of the regions most affected by climate change.

-Local communities directly experience climate impacts, such as melting glaciers, droughts, and extreme weather.

-Local residents and researchers provide valuable firsthand knowledge about these effects.

-Their experiences help create climate policies that address real community needs.

-Policies based only on global organizations or leaders may be too broad and ineffective for local situations.

-Including knowledge from the South leads to more effective and equitable climate solutions.

What is the "reimbursable patient" and what were some of the conditions for its creation?

-represented by billing codes (ICD-10) rather than their full personal medical story.

- became common after the HITECH Act of 2009, which expanded electronic medical records and medical coding.

-The system makes billing and record-sharing easier for hospitals and insurance companies.

Discuss the difference between an "embodied patient" and a "reimbursable patient, " and why does the latter pose a problem for healthcare in the US?

Embodied patient: The real person, including their experiences, history, emotions, and social circumstances that affect their health.

Reimbursable patient: The patient as represented by billing codes and electronic medical records for insurance purposes.

problem: important patient details may be lost when patients are reduced to billing codes

-doctors may rely heavily on coded records and make assumptions about patients

How does the symbolic meaning of tea in Taiwan influence its political landscape? What does Tea Art say about the human capacity to be affected by taste?

symbolic:

-a symbol of Taiwanese culture, identity, and heritage.

-Tea production and tea culture help distinguish Taiwan from mainland China.

-Because tea is tied to national identity, it can become connected to discussions about politics, culture, and belonging.

human cap:

-Tea Art shows that taste is not just a biological sensation but also a cultural and emotional experience.

-Taste can shape emotions, memories, social relationships, and ways of understanding the world.

In what sense does Li Zhang argue that China is an anxious society today? What are the main triggers of anxiety among Chinese people?

Anxious because rapid economic growth and social change have created uncertainty, pressure, and insecurity in everyday life.

main triggers of anxiety:

-rapid modernization and inequality

-job and financial pressure

-housing and the cost of life

-health and safety concerns

-social expectations

. What does the notion bentuhua mean? Give three examples for how some Chinese therapists engage in culturing global psychotherapy to fit the Chinese condition and cultural expectations

bentuhua: means localization-- adapting western ideas to fit into the chinese standards cultural and society

3 ex:

1. reframe autonomy by emphaszing family connection

2. family therapy: work towards healing and maintaining the family

3. take a more mentor like role rather than relationships that are culturally expected

Satir Family Therapy

looking at a person's issue through family relationships. The issue roots though anything related to family and how members affect one another

cognitive behavioral therapy

focuses on how thoughts, feelings and behavior are connected.

Sandplay Therapy

use a sandbox and small figure to let people play and create their own scene, projecting their emotions that might be hard to explain in their own words

Discuss why these therapeutic models/branches are preferred by Chinese psychotherapists and how each model is connected to certain elements of Chinese cultural practices. a) Wing Yee Tang b) Hope Malabed.

-prefer these techniques bc they can be adapted to fit chinese values through localization

a) prefer satir family therapy because it focuses on the family as a whole rather than individually. reflects that personal problems are related to family

b) prefer CBT and sandplay because they can be adapted to cultural expectations. CBT is related to changing thoughts while sandplay is useful due to non verbal emotional expression which can help align with cultural preferences

What is "therapeutic governing?" Why do various Chinese organizations (i.e. military, police, and state-owned firms) adopt "therapeutic governing" today?

-a management method that is a combination of psychological knowledge and "kindness" (guan ai) to regulate society and manage people.

-creates a friendlier and more caring image of institutions like the military, police, and state-owned companies.

-It helps improve morale, productivity, and loyalty among workers and soldiers.

What are the pros and cons in using this new style of management by providing two concrete examples from the book?

pros:

-Improves morale and loyalty by making institutions feel more caring and supportive.

Example: State-owned companies using workplace "happiness workshops" help reduce worker stress and increase satisfaction, which can improve productivity and reduce complaints.

Helps prevent problems early by identifying emotional stress and potential unrest before it escalates.

Example: The military keeping psychological files (dangan) on soldiers helps monitor mental state and decide promotions or interventions to maintain stability.

cons:

-Can increase social control under the appearance of care, making institutions more powerful in people's private lives.

Example: The military's psychological monitoring can be used not just for support but also to track and control soldiers' behavior and careers.

-May ignore deeper structural problems by focusing on emotions instead of working conditions or inequality.

Example: Workplace "happiness" programs in state firms may reduce complaints without fixing real issues like workload, pay, or labor conditions.

therapeutic self

a mode of selfhood created through psychotherapeutic practices like counseling, group training, self-help programs, and psychological education.

Why do many middle-class Chinese embrace this new wave of self-development and self-exploration?

- rapid economic growth has not necessarily brought personal fulfillment.

-Despite achieving material success, many people experience anxiety, stress, and uncertainty due to housing costs, job competition, educational pressures, and social changes.

-Psychotherapy, counseling, and self-help practices provide ways to improve mental well-being, find meaning, and cope with the challenges of modern life while still maintaining strong family and social relationships.

Discuss the changing relationship between the self and the broader social nexus over time in Chinese society.

During the Mao era, people were expected to prioritize collective goals over personal desires, and their identities were shaped mainly by their roles in society.

- Today, there is a greater focus on personal emotions, self-development, and mental health, although individuals are still expected to maintain strong family and social responsibilities.

According to James Smith, how is our cell phone connected to the extractive economy in the digital age and why is this extractive economy problematic?

-connected to the extractive economy because they rely on minerals such as coltan, which is mined in places like the Democratic Republic of the Congo and used to make electronic devices function.

- This extractive economy is problematic because it often involves dangerous working conditions, worker exploitation, conflict, and unequal power relationships that are largely hidden from consumers.