Week 12-Applied Anthropology

Question 1

Medical anthropology

Answer 1

Subfield that combines biological anthropology, cultural anthropology that is centered on human health.

Factors that contribute to disease or illness, injury, mental health, and malnutrition.

Question 2

Describe 3 ways medical anthropologists engage with communities and medical practitioners

Answer 2

• Seek to work with organizations attempting to get medical care and aid to people suffering from medical conditions
• seek to help medical practitioners understand why some are distrustful of western doctors
• Seek to help local populations understand that western medicine can be helpful; try to get others on the same page of what health, and well-being can mean

Question 3

Human Terrain Team program

Answer 3

Goal=to help facilitate communication between army personnel and local communities to diffuse/prevent misunderstandings; improve the situation

Anthropologists go with the army to help them

Question 4

What are some reasons anthropologists give to support their disapproval of the human terrain team program?

Answer 4

Information anthropologists provide may result in the harm of people with whom they interact

(Information can be misconstrued)

Anthropologists want the people they study to trust them! If they don’t have trust they can’t learn as much.

Concern that this program is not to help people

Question 5

I’m what way is medical anthropology biocultural?

Answer 5

Biology + culture

Combine demography (study of human populations) and epidemiology (medical study of how diseases spread through populations)

They look at the conditions in which people live and how they can hinder or help spread diseases

Question 6

Syndemic analysis

Answer 6

Involves one or more epidemics or other societal problems (ex: poverty and violence) that work together to create a more negative impact on health than their would be without the societal problems.

Non-medical problems have a strong influence on medical problems and epidemics

Question 7

Structural violence

Answer 7

Social mechanisms that prevent a population or group of people from becoming as healthy as they should be

Non-physical violence

Institutionalize racism, gender inequality, lack of access to clean water/adequate housing.

Question 8

How can structural violence affect a persons health?

Answer 8

Causing diseases
-Poor housing, limited access to resources/good soil and water, pollution

Sexual violence

Question 9

How can structural violence affect a persons agency?

Answer 9

Takes away a persons ability to avoid these high-risk behaviors.

Deprives individuals of their agency

Question 10

Medical pluralism

Answer 10

Combining western medicine and ethnomedical systems

Ethnomedical

• ethnic medicine
• medical beliefs of different cultures (spiritual, religious, etc.)

Question 11

Anthropologist ethics statement

DO NO HARM

Answer 11

• Before doing any work one must think through the possible ways the research could potentially cause harm
• Avoid harming dignity and bodily/material well-being
• if you notice a potential for harm this should outweigh the goal of seeking new information