Anthropology Final Exam

What is a band?

A small, egalitarian group of hunter-gatherers with little formal leadership

Example of a band

The San of Southern Africa

What is a tribe?

A larger society made up of several families or villages connected by kinship

Example of a tribe

A larger society made up of several families or villages connected by kinship

What is a chiefdom?

A ranked society led by a chief who inherits authority

Example of a chiefdom

Traditional Hawaiian society

What is a state?

A politically organized society with centralized government, formal laws, taxation, bureaucracy, and the ability to enforce laws through police or military

Example of a state

Florida

What is social control?

The methods societies use to encourage people to follow social rules and maintain order

What is cultural control?

Internalized values and beliefs learned through culture that influence behavior naturally

How is cultural control different from social control?

• Cultural control = people obey because they have learned society’s values.

• Social control = specific mechanisms used to enforce acceptable behavior

Examples of formal methods of social control

Laws, police, courts, government, military, and prisons

Informal methods of social control

Gossip, ridicule, peer pressure, public opinion

What is a moot?

A community meeting where disputes are discussed publicly until a solution is reached

Why don’t moots and song duels work well in states?

State societies are too large and complex. Instead of resolving disputes face-to-face, they rely on formal legal systems

What is the difference between power and authority?

Power is the ability to make others do something. Authority is power that people willingly accept as rightful

What is an acephalous society?

A “headless” society with no permanent political leader

Where are acephalous societies commonly found?

Bands and some tribes

The three dimensions of political organization

Territorial size, population size, and degree of political integration

What is voluntaristic theory

People voluntarily joined together for mutual benefit and protection.

What is hydraulic theory

States formed because large irrigation systems required centralized organization

What is coercive theory

States developed through conquest, warfare, and force

What is a pan-tribal sodality?

An organization that brings together members from different kin groups within a tribe

Why are pan-tribal sodalities important?

They promote cooperation and unity across different families or villages

Examples of pan-tribal sodalities

Age sets, warrior societies, religious societies, and military organizations

What is a corporate lineage?

A kinship group that owns property, shares resources, and acts as a single political or economic unit

What is ancestor worship

Honoring deceased ancestors who are believed to influence the living

How can religion serve as social control

It encourages obedience through shared beliefs, moral rules, and fear of supernatural consequences