chapter 1
when did anthropology emerge as an academic disipline
1800s
Qualitative methods
A research strategy producing an in-depth and detailed description of social activities and beliefs.
the 19th century british anthropologist credited with the development of the concept of culture through evolutionary perspective was
E.B Taylor
Contemporary cultural anthropologists often rank societies along an evolutionary scale from "primitive" to "advanced." T/F
FALSE
Historical archaeologists excavate sites where written historical documentation exists that provide an accurate description of the way the people actually live. T/F
FALSE
T/F The scientific method is a research method in pursuit of ultimate truth
FALSE
Anthropologists have always approached a problem by specializing in one of the four subfields T/F
TRUE
Diversity, defined anthropologically, refers to both multiplicity and variety, which is not the same thing as "difference" T/F
TRUE
ethnocentrism
The assumption that one's own way of doing things is correct, while dismissing other people's practices or views as wrong or ignorant.
colonialism
The historical practice of more powerful countries claiming possession of less powerful ones.
salvage paradigm
The paradigm that held that it was important to observe indigenous ways of life, interview elders, and assemble collections of objects made and used by indigenous peoples.
Archaeology
The study of past cultures, by excavating sites where people lived, worked, farmed, or conducted some other activity.
A key concern in the 1850s that shaped the discipline of anthropology was the emergence of a new scientific theory called "evolution. T/F
True
Anthropologists like E.E. Evans-Pritchard and Renato Rosaldo do not see cultural anthropology as a science T/F
True
Qualitative methods often use the researchers themselves as the research instrument T/F
True
There is rarely any guessing involved in the development of theories because they are tested repeatedly. T/F
True
theory
a collection of tested and repeatedly supported hypotheses
A key principle of the holistic perspective developed by Franz Boas
a goal of synthesizing the entire context of human experience
quantitative methods
a methodology that classifies features of a phenomenon, counting or measuring them, and constructing 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
a research method that derives insights from careful comparisons of aspects of two or more cultures or societies
An ethical approach to anthropological research would emphasize
all of these (rejection of cladistine research, responsibilities towards the host, commitment to doing no harm
Applied Anthropology
anthropological research commissioned to serve an organization's needs
practicing anthropology
anthropological work involving research as well as involvement in the design, implementation, and management of some organization, process, or product
which of the following is the most significant aspect of the salvage paradigm
anthropologists need to collect information from societies before they die out
The practical use of anthropologic al knowledge to address real-world problems, sometimes called anthropology's "fifth field," is
applied anthropology
the subfield of anthropology that studies the material remains of past cultures, often focusing on the rise of cities is called
archaeology
The Human Terrain System, a program of the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan, used anthropologists to ______________________________
better understand locals, (against the locals)
the subfield of anthropology that studies human evolution, including human genetics and human nutrition is called
biological anthropology
A quantitative approach to studying the archaeological past would be most interested
building and testing hypotheses by collecting, classifying, and measuring the remains of past cultures
the thinker who developed evolutionary theory in the nineteenth century was
charles darwin
The historical practice of more powerful countries claiming possession of less powerful ones is called _____________________ and was a driving force in anthropology
colonialism
The comparative method is:
comparing 2 or more cultures
the subfield of anthropology that studies human diversity, beliefs, and practices is called
cultural anthropology
the moral and intellectual principle that one should withhold judgement about seemingly strange or exotic beliefs and practices is known as
cultural relativism
A key feature of the_____________concept is that it refers to the taken-for-granted notions, rules, moralities, and behaviors within a social group that feel natural.
culture
holism
efforts to synthesize distinct approaches and findings into a single comprehensive interpretation
Assuming your culture's way of doing things is the best is called
ethnocentrism
The method of data collection that involves prolonged and intensive observation of everyday life and is a hallmark of cultural anthropology
ethnographic method
__________________ refers to the adaptive changes that organisms make across generations
evolution
Research that involves interviews, observations, images, objects, and words is a _____ study
feildwork?
Linguistic anthropologists traditionally study
how our mouths form word, how our language evolve, how indigenous people classify their social worlds
What process involves shifting from an agricultural economy to a factory-based one?
industriallization
The practice of anthropologists explaining their research to participants and being clear about the risks involved is called
informed consent
During fieldwork, cultural anthropologist
interview people, live in the society
The application of the comparative method in his research in Papua New Guinea led coauthor Robert Welsch to focus on
interviews of village elders in different villages, published and unpublished accounts of mask collectors who visited different villages, and museum collections
the subfield of anthropology that studies language is called
linguistic anthropology
Ethics, which are_______________________________, are important to anthropologist
moral obligations
ethics
moral questions about right and wrong standards of appropriate behavior
The process by which inheritable traits are passed along to offspring because they are better suited to the environment is
natural selection
Western colonial powers understood the different customs and cultures of the people they colonized a
proof of their primitive nature
Techniques that classify features of a phenomenon and count, measure, and construct statistical models are collecting and analyzing
quantitative data
A relativistic perspective on the meanings of Coca-Cola in Tzotzil Maya communities in Chiapas, Mexico, would emphasize what
that those meanings are only sensible within a culturally specific set of ideas about religion and spirituality
evolution
the adaptive changes in populations of organisms across generations
Even though anthropologists use parts of the scientific method, some don't see what they do as a science because
the complexity of social behavior prevents any completely objective analysis of human culture
qualitative approach to studying social life in your university would emphasize what?
the construction of statistical models to explain activities in the community
Industrialization
the economic process of shifting from a agricultural economy to a factory-based one
What prompted intellectuals to start systematically explaining the differences among people?
the industrial revolution
cultural relativism
the moral and intellectual principle that one should withhold judgement about seemingly strange or exotic beliefs and practices
the primary ethical responsibility of anthropologists is to (who)
the people or species they study
diversity
the sheer variety of ways of being human around the world
scientific method
the standard methodology of science that begins from observable facts, generates hypotheses from these facts and then tests these hypotheses
Lingustic Anthropology
the study of how people communicate with one another through language and how language uses shapes group membership and indentity
anthropology
the study of human beings and their biology, prehistory and histories and their changing languages, cultures and social institutions
Biological Anthropology
the study of the biological aspects of the human species, past and present, along with those of our closest relatives, the nonhuman primates
cultural anthropology
the study of the social lives of living communities
evolutionary perspective would be most likely to explain colonialism a
the superior natural abilities of one group of people allowing them to control an inferior group of people
culture
the taken-for-granted notions, rules, moralities, and behaviors within a social group
A key element of the scientific method, which both explains things and guides research
theories
empirical
verifiable through observation rather than through logic or theory