Asking Questions about Cultural Anthropology Chapter 1

Anthropology

The study of human beings, their biology, their prehistory and histories, and their dynamic languages, cultures, and social institutions.

Industrialization

The Economic process of shifting from an agricultural economy to a factory-based one

Evolution

The adaptive biological changes organisms make across generations

Colonialism

The historic practice of more powerful countries claiming possession of less powerful ones

Salvage Paradigm

The paradigm which held that it was important to observe indigenous ways of life, interview elders, and assemble collections of objects made and used by indigenous peoples.

Cultural Anthropology

focuses on the social lives of living communities

Archaeology

Studies past cultures by excavating sites where people lived, worked, farmed, or conducted some other activity.

Biological Anthropology

Focuses on the biological aspects of the human species, past and present, along with those of our closest relatives, the nonhuman primates

Linguistic Anthropology

Studies how people communicate with one another through language, and how language use shapes group membership and identity

Culture

Refers to taken-for-granted notions, rules, moralities, and behaviors within a social group that feel natural and suggest the way things should be.

Ethnocentrism

Assuming one's own way of doing things is correct, while simply dismissing other people's assumptions as wrong or ignorant

Cultural Relativism

the moral and intellectual principle that one should withhold judgement about seemingly strange or exotic beliefs and practices

Diversity

the sheer variety of ways of being human around the world

Holism

The anthropological commitment to consider the full scope of human life, including culture, biology, history, and language, across space and time.

Scientific Method

A series of steps followed to solve problems including collecting data, formulating a hypothesis, testing the hypothesis, and stating conclusions.

Theory

A hypothesis that has been tested with a significant amount of data

quantitative methods

classifies features of a phenomenon, count or measure them, and construct mathematical and statistical models to explain what is observed.

ethnographic method

a prolonged and intensive observation of and participation in the life of a community

comparative method

derives insights from careful comparisons of aspects of two or more cultures or societies

Applied Anthropology

The use of anthropological knowledge and methods to solve practical problems, often for a specific client.

Practicing Anthropology

the broadest category of anthropological work, in which the anthropologist not only performs research but also gets involved in the design, implementation, and management of some organization, process, or product

Ethics

Moral questions about right and wrong and standards of appropriate behavior

How did anthropology begin?

During the nineteenth century, the rise of industrialization, the influence of evolutionary theory, and colonial contact with less-industrialized cultures led to the discipline of understanding how cultures operate and interact

What do the four subfields of anthropology have in common?

Anthropologists share certain fundamental approaches and concepts, which they agree are important for making sense of humanity's complexity. These include culture cultural relativism, diversity, change, and holism

How do anthropologists know what they know?

Anthropology has a strong relationship with the scientific method: all anthropologists use theories, collect data, and analyze those data

How do anthropologists put their knowledge into the world?

At some point in their careers, most anthropologists get involved in work with practical, real-world concerns, applying their research skills and knowledge to the creation or implementation of policies, the management of social programs, the conduct of legal proceedings, or even the design of consumer products.

What ethical obligations do anthropologists have?

First, anthropologists learn about how and why people in other cultures think and act as they do by researching their moral standards.

Second, doing anthropology itself involves ethical relationships between researchers and others, raising many important and complex issues about the ethical conduct of anthropological research and practice