Researching CultureChanging the study of anthropology and its research methods

From the armchair to the field• Armchair anthropology: Many anthropologists during the 19th

century conducted a majority of their research from the comfort of their home libraries and discussed topics of interest with other researchers.

• Verandah anthropology: European colonial governments moved to learn more about the indigenous peoples living with their colonized territories (Africa and Asia).

• These researchers were typically wealthy, well-educated white males.

• Lewis Henry Morgan (US late 19th century) was first to attempt to actually learn about a specific people and their culture through direct observation, in context and through direct social interactions. The Native American tribe the Iroquois were is research subject. He remolded the perception that Native Americans were, “dangerous savages”.

The Birth of Participant Observation20th century specifically during WWI laid the foundationFor field research in Cultural Anthropology…

• Fieldwork : Research in the field, which is any place where people and culture are found.

**Participant Observation: A basic fieldwork method in Cultural anthropology that involves living in a culture For a long time while gathering ethnographic data. (Photo: B.Malinowski South Pacific, Trobriand Islanders)

***• Living with the people for an extended period of time (2-3 years)• Participating in and observing people’s everyday life • Learning the local language

Primary goals were to learn, gather, and record as much information on the culture being researched.

• Multi-sited Research: Fieldwork conducted in more than one location in order to understandThe culture of dispersed members of the culture or relationships among different levels of culture.

Field Research: Break down• Project Selection• Literature Review

-Pick a topic or Region for research- Restudy of previous sites

Preparing for The Field:Apply for grants or fundingProject visas, travel, and informed consent from individuals being

researched/studied.Working in the Field

- Pick a site or sites- Build a rapport with the population being studied. -Gift giving and exchange- Gifts being exchanged should be culturally and ethically

appropriate.-what is an appropriate gift- How to deliver the gift- How to behave when receiving a gift- If and how to give a follow up gift

Micro-cultures and Fieldwork• The researching anthropologist faces several obstacles when

conducting long term field research…• **Culture Shock: Persistent feelings of uneasiness, loneliness,

and anxiety that often occur when a person has shifted from one culture to a different one.

• Class, Ancestry, gender, and age will affect how the local people will perceive and welcome a researcher.

• Micro-cultures can directly influence rapport and affect the research in other ways.

Fieldwork TechniquesResearch Approach Process Data

Deductive (Etic) Hypothesis followed by data collection

Quantitative data for hypothesis testing

Inductive (Emic) No hypotheses, data collection follows from

participants’ lead

Qualitative data for descriptive insights

• Interview: A research technique that involves gathering verbal data through questions or guided conversation between at least two people.

• Questionnaire: A formal research instrument containing a pre-set series of questions that the researcher asks in a face-to-face setting, by mail or email.

Specialized Research Methods• Life Histories: are a qualitative, in depth description of an

individual’s life as narrated to the researcher.

***Time Allocation Study: Quantitative method that collects data on how people spend their time each day on particular activities.

Field research Data is compiled in the following ways…-Texts, archival and historical sources. -Multiple Research Methods and Team Projects- Field notes, Tape recordings, photographs and videos.

Data Analysis • Analysis of Qualitative data deals with descriptive field notes,

narratives, myths and stories, songs and sagas, etc.• Analysis of Quantitative data deals with numeric or statistical

data and can proceed in a variety of directions.

• Ethnography: First hand or a detailed description of a living culture based on personal observation and study.

• Collaborative Research: Involves multiple anthropologists working with members of the study population as partners and participants as opposed to subjects.

Safety in the Field• Fieldwork can involve serious physical and psychological risks

to the researcher(s). • Many researchers and their families can run into many problems

including- infectious diseases, mental stress or strain, violence, political violence or war, and hazardous research areas.

Where would you study and why?