Anthropology Study Guide for Exam 1

Chapter 1: What is Anthropology?

Key Questions:

• What is Anthropology?

  • How is it distinct from other fields that study the human condition (e.g., Psychology, History, Sociology)?

• Interdisciplinary nature:

  • How is Anthropology linked to both the hard sciences (e.g., Biology) and the humanities (e.g., History, Philosophy)?

• Scientific vs. nonscientific explanations:

  • How do they differ, and why does Anthropology focus on scientific explanations?

• Subfields of Anthropology:

  • What are the four main subfields, what do they examine, and what do they have in common?

    • Cultural Anthropology

    • Archaeology

    • Biological Anthropology

    • Linguistic Anthropology

• Ethics in Anthropology:

  • What ethical obligations do anthropologists have when conducting research?

Key Terms:

• Cultural relativism

• Ethnocentrism

• Scientific method

• Holism

• Fieldwork

Chapter 2: What is Culture?

Key Questions:

• Definition of culture:

  • How do Anthropologists define culture?

• Stability vs. change:

  • If culture is always changing, why does it often feel so stable?

• Cross-cultural approaches:

  • Why do Anthropologists use cross-cultural comparisons to study humans?

  • What insights can a cross-cultural approach provide?

Key Terms:

• Enculturation

• Acculturation

• Cross-cultural perspective

• Symbols

• Tradition

• Norms

• Cultural appropriation

Chapter 3: Human Biocultural Evolution

Key Questions:

• Evolutionary theory:

  • What is evolutionary theory, and why is it significant in Anthropology?

  • How have evolutionary hypotheses changed since Darwin’s time?

• Mechanisms of change:

  • What are genetic and non-genetic mechanisms of change in populations? Examples include:

    • Gene flow

    • Genetic drift

    • Natural selection

    • Mutation

    • Niche construction

• Key figures in Western scientific thought:

  • Review the contributions of the following individuals:

    • Carl Linnaeus

    • Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon

    • Jean-Baptiste Lamarck

    • Georges Cuvier

    • Charles Lyell

    • Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace

Key Terms:

• Adaptation

• Allele

• Gene

• Chromosomes

• Genotype

• Phenotype

• DNA

• Extended evolutionary synthesis

• Plasticity

Chapter 4: Culture and Globalization

Key Questions:

• Globalization:

  • What is globalization, and how does it impact cultures worldwide?

  • How do Anthropologists apply their perspective to contemporary global issues?

• Benefits of globalization:

  • Do all people benefit from a globalized world? Why or why not?

• Cultural identities:

  • Are cultural identities fixed, or are they fluid and multiple?

• Impact of colonialism:

  • How have cultures and ethnic identities been shaped by colonial histories?

• Anthropological strategies:

  • What strategies can Anthropologists use to study global interconnections?

• Development:

  • What is Development, and how do Anthropologists study it?

Key Terms:

• Postcolonialism

• Transnational

• Immigrants

• World systems theory