Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Social Anthropology > Unit 2 > Flashcards

Unit 2 Flashcards

Anthropology as a science: theoretical and methodological aspects

1
Q

What is unilinear evolutionism in anthropology?

A

Culture obeys natural laws and therefore can be studied scientifically

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Who is Lewis Henry Morgan, and what is his contribution to cultural evolution?

A

known for his work “Ancient Society,” where he argued that human society evolves through a series of stages, and all societies must go through these stages without skipping any.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What is Edward Burnett Tylor’s significance in anthropology?

A

suggested that religion would diminish as science provides better explanations for phenomena
-> key in anthropology of religion

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What are the stages of cultural evolution according to Morgan?

A

Savagery, Barbarism, Civilization

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What does animism refer to in the context of Tylor’s theories?

A

Animism is the belief in spiritual beings, considered the earliest form of religion in Tylor’s perspective.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What are the other forms of religious belief identified by Tylor (next to animism)?

A

Polytheism: The belief in multiple gods.
Monotheism: The belief in a single, all-powerful deity.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Who is Franz Boas? What did he believe in?

A

the father of American anthropology
-> Historical particularism

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is historical particularism?

A

different cultures develop in unique ways, rejecting comparisons and generalizations across cultures

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What did Boas argue about cultural solutions?

A

similar solutions can arise independently in different cultures

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

what is an example of similar cultural solutions to common problems?

A

agriculture

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What was Historical particularism based on?

A

on the idea that each element of culture, such as the culture trait or trait complex, had its own distinctive history and that social forms that might look similar

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is an example for a cultural trait and a trait complex?

A

culture trait: bow and arrow;
trait complex: hunting pattern
-> need to be accepted and integrated

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Who are the key figures associated with functionalism?

A

include Bronislaw Malinowski, and Alfred Radcliffe-Brown

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What does functionalism focus on?

A

The roles of cultural traits in contemporary societies

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Who is the father of ethnography?

A

Bronislaw Malinowski

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What is the relationship between customs and institutions according to Malinowski?

A

They are integrated and interrelated

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What is the function of customs according to Malinowski?

A

they fulfill universal biological needs (sex, food and shelter)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What did Radcliffe-Brown emphasize?

A

The role of particular practices in life of societies today

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What is synchronic study?

A

Studying societies at one time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

What are the 2 types of functionalism?

A

Structural functionalism
Panglossian functionalism

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Who invented structural functionalism and what did he compare the social system with?

A

Radcliffe-Brown & Evans-Pritchard
compared social system to anatomical and physiological systems

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

What is Structural functionalism?

A

the idea that a system has a structure whose parts function to maintain the whole, similar to how organs and processes kept the body running smoothly

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

How do customs, practices, social roles and behavior relate to structural functionalism?

A

function to keep social system running, contributing to the overall stability of the society

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

What is Panglossian functionalism?

A

the belief that the function of culture is to maintain harmony and that everything functions in the most optimal way possible for the system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

How does Panglossian functionalism view deviations from the norm?

A

any deviation form the norm is seen as damaging to the system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

How does structural functionalism view rebellion and conflict?

A

is interested in how rebellion and conflict are regulated and dissipated to maintain the stability of the system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

Who were Ruth Benedict and Margaret Mead?

A

2 students of Boas

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

How did Benedict and Mead view culture?

A

as integrated and powerful, shaping the personalities and behaviors of its members

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

What did Benedict and Mead believe about the variation in cultures?

A

that cultures vary in their patterns of enculturation, which influence how members develop both their personalities and biology

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

What is neoevolutionism in anthropology?

A

the renewed interest in studying culture change and human evolution

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

What was Evolution linked to?

A

Biology

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
32
Q

What did Leslie White contribute to neoveolutionism?

A

general evolution
-> we can observe how cultures evolve over time, through archaeological, historical, and ethnographic records

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
33
Q

What is Julian Steward’s Theory of Cultural Change?

A

multilinear evolution
-> cultural ecology (environmental influence)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
34
Q

How do technology and the environment influence cultural change according to neoevolutionism?

A

Technology and environmental factors are seen as causes of cultural change in neoevolutionary theory

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
35
Q

What concept did Marvin Harris develop?

A

cultural materialism, insisting that anthropology is a science focused on uncovering cause-and-effect relationships

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
36
Q

What are the 3 components of cultural materialism?

A

infrastructure, structure and superstructure

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
37
Q

How do the components of cultural materialism relate to each other?

A

Infrastructure (material and economic base) determines both the structure (social relations) and the superstructure (ideology and beliefs) of a society

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
38
Q

What is the main goal of structuralism according to Claude Levi-Strauss?

A

discovering rather than explaining, the relations, themes and connections among aspects of culture

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
39
Q

What did Lévi-Strauss believe about the human mind?

A

that human minds have universal characteristics (mental structures) that cause individuals to think similarly, regardless of their society or cultural background

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
40
Q

What are some key universal characteristics of the human mind according to structuralism?

A

The need to classify, impose order, and think in dichotomies (e.g., good vs. evil, old vs. young, high vs. low).

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
41
Q

What is culture in Levi Strauss opinion?

A

a system of communication

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
42
Q

How did Lévi-Strauss apply structuralism to culture?

A

applied it to myths and folk tales
-> cultures are just different expression of the common human mind, only change in some elements

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
43
Q

What example illustrates Lévi-Strauss’s concept of structuralism in cultures?

A

Mariage - practices differ among cultures but concept exists in most societies

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
44
Q

What did Leslie White (neoevolutionism) name cultural anthropology?

A

Culturology

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
45
Q

What is the individuals role in cultural forces?

A

makes little difference because cultural forces are so powerful

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
46
Q

What is Leslie white’s “great man theory of history”?

A

emphasized the constellation of cultural forces that produce great individuals, focusing on the broader cultural context rather than individual actions

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
47
Q

What is proof of Leslie whites culturology theory?

A

simultaneity of discovery

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
48
Q

What is durkheim’s view on anthropology?

A

should be a science based on social facts that are distinct from individuals

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
49
Q

What does Durkheim’s study focus on?

A

systems which consist of social positions (statuses and roles) and which are perpetuated across generations through enculturation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
50
Q

How does Durkheim explain variations suicide rates?

A

can and should be linked to social phenomena
-> applies only to collectivities

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
51
Q

What is symbolic anthropology?

A

the study of symbols in their social and cultural context

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
52
Q

Who was important in Symbolic anthropology, what did he analyze?

A

Turner - the forest of symbols
-> hierarchy of symbols, their social meaning and functions and internalization within individuals

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
53
Q

What are symbols and rituals used to?

A

to redress, regulate, anticipate, and avoid conflict

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
54
Q

What is Clifford Geertz’s definition of culture?

A

system based on cultural learning and symbols
-> views culture as a text that ethnographic researchers must decipher

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
55
Q

What does interpretive anthropology focus on (Clifford Geertz)?

A

focuses on understanding cultures by interpreting the meanings that individuals assign to their experiences, symbols, and social practices

56
Q

What happens during enculturation?

A

During enculturation, individuals internalize an already established system of meanings and symbols that shape their worldview

57
Q

How should anthropologists view the cultures of natives according to symbolic anthropology?

A

Cultures are texts that natives constantly “read” and ethnographers must decipher.

58
Q

What do processual approaches examine?

A

How individuals interact with culture

59
Q

What is practice theory in processual approaches?

A

an approach that focuses on how individuals through their actions and practices influence and transform the cultural and social environments they inhabit

60
Q

What does Practice theory recognize?

A

a reciprocal relation between culture and the individual
-> each influences and transforms the other

61
Q

who are key figures associated with practice theory?

A

Sherry Ordner, Pierre Bourdieu and Anthony Giddens

62
Q

What does Practice theory do?

A

transform and influence the world

63
Q

What is the crisis of representation in anthropology?

A

insiders accounts are more valuable and appropriate than studies by outsiders
-> whose voices and perspectives are valued?

64
Q

What should Anthropologists be?

A

representative of their OWN culture

65
Q

What is Postmodernism?

A

asserts that science cannot be fully trusted because it is conducted by scientists who possess inherent cultural biases, challenging the notion of objective knowledge

66
Q

What is also an issue according to postmodernism?

A

the two-way interaction - natives observe anthropologist
-> not natural

67
Q

What should anthropologists be aware of in their research?

A

stay aware of their biases and inability to escape them

68
Q

What has becoming a cultural anthropologist required traditionally?

A

a field experience in another society

69
Q

Where did early ethnographers live?

A

in small-scale, relatively isolated societies with simple technologies and economies

70
Q

In what context did ethnography emerge as a research strategy?

A

in societies characterized by greater cultural uniformity and less social differentiation than found in large, modern, industrial nations.

71
Q

What is the primary goal of ethnographers in studying culture?

A

understand the whole of a particular culture

72
Q

Why doe ethnographers move from setting to setting, place to place and subject to subject?

A

to discover the totality and interconnectedness of social life

73
Q

how does ethnography provide a foundation for generalizations about human behavior and social life?

A

by expanding our knowledge of the range of human diversity

74
Q

What are Ethnographic techniques?

A

direct observation & participant observation
interviews: unstructured and structured
The genealogical method
key consultants or informants
life histories of particular people
discovery and comparison of local beliefs with ethnographers conclusion
longitudinal studies (long term study)
survey research

75
Q

What is essential in observation and participant observation?

A

establishing rapport

76
Q

What is rapport?

A

having a good, friendly working relationship based on personal contact, with their hosts

77
Q

What does participant observation mean?

A

they take part in community life as they study it

78
Q

How do ethnographers record the most important aspects of cultural diversity (e.g.: smells, noises, how they eat, etc.)?

A

in a personal diary

79
Q

What is the first step of interviews?

A

learning the local language

80
Q

What is a more structured, formal and personal form of interviewing?

A

interview schedule

81
Q

What is a more indirect and impersonal form of interviewing?

A

Questionnaire

82
Q

What is the genealogical method?

A

a well established ethnographic technique

83
Q

What does the genealogical method contain?

A

Diagrams and Symbols

84
Q

What is an example of Diagrams and Symbols?

A

Family tree

85
Q

What are Key consultants in Anthropology?

A

People in the community who can provide useful information to ethnographers due to their life experience, training, talent

86
Q

What are Life Histories in Anthropology?

A

In-depth interviews
-> local people reveal how specific people perceive, react to and contribute to changes that affect their lives

87
Q

How are life histories documented?

A

recorded or videotaped, reviewed and analyzed

88
Q

What is the perspective of how local people think/behave called?

A

Emic perspective
- cultural consultants - informants

89
Q

What is the perspective of the explanations and interpretations of the ethnographer called?

A

Etic perspective

90
Q

What is important for good results when it comes to emic and etc perspectives?

A

Comparison between both perspectives

91
Q

What is longitudinal research?

A

the long-term study of a community, region, society, culture, or other unit, usually based on repeated visits

92
Q

What is survey research?

A

The study of society through sampling, statistical analysis, and impersonal data collection.

93
Q

What is the difference between Ethnography and Survey research?

A

Ethnography: studies whole, functioning communities, based on firsthand field work, interested in ALL aspects of local life, nonindustrial, little use of statistics

Survey research: studies small samples of larger population, little or no personal contact between subjects and researchers, focus on small number of variables, carried out in modern nations, depends heavily on statistical analysis

94
Q

What are objects of study of social anthropology?

A

Language, Ethnicity and race, Gender, Religion, Families, kinship, descent, arts and media

95
Q

What is language (spoken or written)?

A

primary means of communication

96
Q

Since how long has writing existed?

A

about 6000 years - but no idea when it was originated exactly

97
Q

What is language transmitted through?

A

learning (part of enculturation)
-> based on learned associations between words and things for which they stand?

98
Q

What is the signifier and the signified?

A

signifier: words
signified: what they stand for

99
Q

What does linguistic anthropology focus on?

A

changes that particular language may have
- is always changing

100
Q

what says a lot about how we think and perceive the world?

A

the way we talk

101
Q

Why do anthropologists study linguistic differences?

A

to discover the patterns of thought in a multitude of cultures

102
Q

what is linguistic diversity in nation-states?

A

multilingualism, dialects and styles used in a single language

103
Q

What is the communications system of nonhuman primates called?

A

call systems
-> limited number of sounds (calls) that are produced only when particular environmental stimuli are encountered
IMPORTANT exam

104
Q

Is the vocal tract of apes suitable for spoken language?

A

no

105
Q

What are some differences between human language and primate call system?

A

human: capacity to speak about things that are not present
primate: calls are stimuli-dependent, cannot combine new calls

106
Q

Who can learn Sign language (used by hearing impaired people?)

A

Apes

107
Q

What is nonverbal communication?

A

Facial expressions, bodily stances, gestures, and movements are part of our communication.

108
Q

What is the study of communication through body language called?

A

Kinesics

109
Q

What communicates social differences?

A

Body movements

110
Q

What is language dependent on?

A

the use of symbols

111
Q

What does Noam Chomsky (1955) state?

A

human brain contains a limited set of rules for organizing language
-> all of them have a common structural basis

112
Q

How is the common structural basis in language called?

A

Language Acquisition Device (LAD)

113
Q

What does it mean that all languages have universal grammar?

A

all human languages share a basic set of rules or principles

114
Q

What is Focal vocabulary? And what is an example?

A

refers to specialized terms important to certain groups, influencing perception
e.g.: eskimos have multiple words for different types of snow (for other cultures it is just snow)

115
Q

what affects lexical distinction?

A

cultural contrasts and changes

116
Q

What are semantic domains?

A

Langauges meaning system

117
Q

What are Ethnosemantics?

A

study of classification systems in different domains across languages (e.g., color terminology)

118
Q

What is Ethnomedicine?

A

the terminology for the causes, symptoms, and cures of disease

119
Q

What is Ethnobotany?

A

native classification of plant life

120
Q

What does sociolinguistics study?

A

the relationships between social factors and linguistic variation, or language in its social context

121
Q

how do new ways of speaking spread?

A

when they are associated with social factors, such as social status, leading people to imitate them

122
Q

What is diglossia in language diversity?

A

Switching related dialects of a language which are discretely separated according to discourse situation (style shifts)
-> whether we use ‘High’ (formal) or ‘Low’ (informal) language

123
Q

What influences our language use according to social anthropology?

A

Situations, geographic, cultural, and socioeconomic differences influence our speech

124
Q

What defines an ethnic group?

A

An ethnic group is defined by shared beliefs, values, customs, and norms stemming from a common background, such as language, religion, history, geographic placement, kinship, or “race.”

125
Q

What is ethnicity?

A

identification with, and feeling part of, an ethnic group and exclusion from certain other groups

126
Q

What does status include?

A

the various positions, no matter the prestige, that people occupy in society. Any
position that determines where someone fits in society

127
Q

What is ascribed status?

A

a social status that individuals have little or no choice in, such as age or race. People are born into these statuses and remain in them throughout their lives

128
Q

What is an achieved status?

A

a social status based on an individual’s choices, actions, efforts, or talents. Examples include being a physician, senator, or college student.

129
Q

What is the situational negotiation of social identity.

A

one identity is used in certain settings, another in different ones

130
Q

What is the difference between mutually exclusive statuses and contextual statuses?

A

mutually exclusive is: if particularly ascribed as one
contextual is: not mutually exclusive but contextual

131
Q

What are 3 positive interactions with ethnic diversity?

A

Assimilation
Plural society
Multiculturalism

132
Q

What does Assimilation describe?

A

the process of change that a minority ethnic group may experience when it moves to a country where another culture dominates.

133
Q

What does the minority do by assimilating? What does that do to the cultural units?

A

adopts to the patterns and norms of its host culture
-> incorporated into dominant culture to the point that it no longer exists as a separate cultural unit

134
Q

What is a plural society?

A

Ethnic distinctions can persist despite generations of interethnic contact.
-> ethnic groups can be in contact for generations without assimilating and can live in peaceful coexistence

135
Q

How did Barth define plural society?

A

as a society combining ethnic contrast, ecological specializations and the economic interdependence of those groups

136
Q

What is Multiculturalism?

A

Social Anthropology (2 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions