The Sociological Perspective - How to Think Like a Sociologist - ThoughtCo The significance of the study of Political Science is discussed below: (1) Imparting Knowledge of the State: However, the primary aim of the study of Political Science is to inculcate knowledge of the State, its origin, nature, structure and functions. In recent decades, anthropologists have been reflecting on the significance and relevance of anthropological research. This led me to pursue graduate work in anthropology despite the fact that I had taken only one anthropology course in college. We create our social realms, Boas would say, determine what we then define as being common sense, universal truths, the appropriate rules and codes of behavior. Eastern hosts second annual Anthropology Day - Eastern What is anthropology and why is it important? To me, an anthropological perspective combines a comparative (cross-cultural), holistic view with a sense of history and social structure, and asks functional questions like what effect does that have? For anthropologists, cultural relativism is especially important. Some people will never get it; their egos won't let them. These perspectives make anthropology distinct from related disciplines like history, sociology, and psychology that ask similar questions about the past, societies, and human nature. Anthropology and Political Science: A Convergent Approach (Anthropology And though his research took him to esoteric realms of myth and shamanism, symbolism and the spirit, he remained grounded in the politics of racial and economic justice, the promise and potential of social change. After much debate, the word science remains in the mission statement and, throughout the United States, anthropology is predominantly categorized as a social science. Hence, Anthropology and its study are indeed important from the perspective of knowing more about us. Know Thyself: A Short Essay on The Importance of Knowing Studying anthropology fosters broad knowledge of other cultures, skills in observation and analysis, critical thinking, clear communication, and applied problem-solving. "Introduction to Anthropology" by Lara Braff, Grossmont College and Katie Nelson, Inver Hills Community College. Included in the day were . The top five responses for the sociology curriculum were: sociological critical thinking; sociological imagination; how to use and . Looking through that course catalogue, I didnt really know what anthropology was but resolved to test-the-waters by taking several classes the following year. What is the importance of knowing the perspective of anthropology, sociology and political science. Boas never called for the elimination of judgment, only its suspension so that the very judgments we are ethically and morally obliged to make as human beings may be informed ones. Although I am not calling for a mass return to foraging, when we consider the significant worldwide issues that humans face todaysuch things as global warming, the threat of nuclear war, accelerating ethnic conflicts, and a world population that has grown from one billion to nearly eight billion over the past two hundred yearswe are left with difficult questions about whether 10,000 years of agriculture and a couple hundred years of industrialization have been in humanitys best long-term interests. The book has been reformatted so that the online and electronic versions are easier to read and navigate. By using a holistic approach, anthropologists reveal the complexity of biological, social, or cultural phenomena. Charles King, professor of international affairs at Georgetown University, begins his remarkable book The Reinvention of Humanity by asking us to envision the world as it existed in the minds of our grandparents, perhaps your great-grandparents. What is Anthropology? Anthropology - UC Davis Anthropology is the systematic study of humanity, with the goal of understanding our evolutionary origins, our distinctiveness as a species, and the great diversity in our forms of social existence across the world and through time. The comparative approach can be historical: How do humans today differ from ancient Homo sapiens? Differences in customs and beliefs reflected differences in intelligence and destiny, with every culture finding its rung on an evolutionary ladder rising from the savage to the barbarian to the civilized of the Strand in London, with technological wizardry, the great achievement of the West, being the sole measure of progress and success. 14. Boas and his students were right. Essay on Anthropology | My Essay Point The Importance of Studying Political Science - Waubonsee One of the most effective writing exercises I give students allows them to examine an essential part of their lives, their cell phones. I resided in a wooden hut with a thatched roof in a small village for much of my stay there, as well as another more modern home, made of galvanized iron. Rather, a professional, or scientific, perspective represented in anthropology emphasises the need to understand what humans do and how they interpret their own actions and world-views. The brilliance of scientific research, the revelations of modern genetics, has affirmed in an astonishing way both the unity of humanity and the essential wisdom of cultural relativism. anthropology, "the science of humanity," which studies human beings in aspects ranging from the biology and evolutionary history of Homo sapiens to the features of society and culture that decisively distinguish humans from other animal species. Understanding the concepts of anthropology, sociology, - SlideShare This article sets the context and defines the term as well as analyzing the scope and importance of political science. He even asserted that racial intermixture can upset the genetic as well as the social equilibrium of a group. Coon at the time of his retirement in 1963 was a respected professor and curator at the University of Pennsylvania. Anthropology matters because it allows us to look beneath the surface of things. Participant observation research allows anthropologists to obtain a special kind of knowledge that is rarely acquired through other, more limited research methods. It was a shattering of the European mind, the sociological equivalent of the splitting of the atom. Sociologists1 believe that multiculturalism is defined by the following actions: Recognizing that there are tons of different cultures and they're all individually diverse. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2009. Throughout our daily lives, our behavior either validates . A prime example of using ethnography for success is in US foreign relations, particularly where the work of anthropologist Ruth Benedict was . It is through comparison that we learn more about the range of possible responses to varying contexts and problems. His core idea, distilled in the notion of cultural relativism, was a radical departure, as unique in its way as was Einsteins theory of relativity in the discipline of physics. Why do we behave the way we do? Preface - Perspectives: An Open Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Early anthropologists were interested in human relations with the environment as factors in cultural development. How is this connected to that? Leadership Chair in Cultures and Ecosystems at Risk at the University of British Columbia. Anthropology, sociology and political science are areas of social science, whose main objective is to study society in historical, social and cultural contexts.. Anthropology is the science that studies the human being in depth considering biological, social and cultural aspects. We listen to and discuss the late writer David Foster Wallaces This is Water commencement address emphasizing empathy and awareness because anthropology fosters these qualities as well. Stallings told the students that it is important for people to be part of the "citizen-government.". Basically, this study involves the understanding of humans and the necessary factors that help us survive. I oftentimes use non-anthropologists work in my classes to anchor our discipline in liberal education. The very existence of other ways of being, other ways of thinking, other visions of life itself, puts the lie to those in our own culture who say that we cannot change, as we know we must, the fundamental way in which we inhabit this planet. While in graduate school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, I became fascinated with Caribbean history and migration and spent almost two years doing doctoral fieldwork and research on the island of Dominica. Concepts in one discipline are used in the other. In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, the AAA met in Washington, D.C. Four thousand anthropologists were in the nation's capital in the wake of the biggest story of culture they or the country would ever encounter. Anthropologists then describe interactions and customs, a process known as ethnography. They attempt to achieve this by observing subjects in their local environment. Where I can use it Direction: Give a certain situation happening in your barangay where you can apply any of the given perspectives. As the events of the last months have shown, the struggle long ago championed by Franz Boas is ongoing. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Thus, anthropology teaches respect for other ways of life, while using a variety of cross-cultural human behavior as a mirror from which we can reflect on the things we do in our own culture. We might compare the roles of men and women in different societies, or contrast how different religious groups conflict within a given society. Then I went back to the U.S. and taught for two years at Long Island University before moving to rural Alfred University in western New York, where I now work. Expanding out to the latest model automobile or smartphone, people seem to have a seldom questioned belief in the notion that newer technologies ultimately improve our lives. Using my own anthropological biography as an illustration, I want to stress that the discipline does not showcase diverse human lifeways to further exoticize those who live differently from us. What is the importance of the anthropological - Course Hero Interracial marriage remained illegal across much of the United States until 1967. Yes, anthropology helps to see the familiar in a new light. Knowledge of society, social groups, social institutions, associations, their functions etc. Thanks for reading Scientific American. Why Study Anthropology? | CAS - Miami University All this contributes to the theme I stress that everything is culturally constructed. Were Boas to be with us today, his voice would surely resound in the public square, the media, in all the halls of power. By the same token, what we take for granted would be unimaginable to those who fiercely defended convictions that appear to the modern eye both transparently wrong and morally reprehensible. Both men shared stories with students about their experience in Congress. Boulder: Westview Press, 1998. Perspectives: An Open Invitation to Cultural Anthropology It is a fact that society and culture are interrelated and interdependent concepts. The Importance Of Sociological Perspectives In Sociology | Cram Section 1. Understanding Culture and Diversity in Building Communities Living in societies throughout the world, and conducting research with people in diverse cultures, were dreams that began to emerge for me when I was an undergraduate student studying anthropology at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in the early 1980s. An important reason for this program is to encourage people to participate in the political process and increase civic engagement among college students. What is the importance of the study of Political Science? Anthropology encourages us to extend our perspectives beyond familiar social contexts to view things from the perspectives of others. One cannot fully appreciate what it means to be human by studying a single aspect of our complex histories, languages, bodies, or societies. Why Study Anthropology? | Sociology and Anthropology | Ole Miss A tireless campaigner for human rights, Boas maintained always that anthropology as a science only made sense if it was practiced in the service of a higher tolerance. And though his research took him to esoteric realms of myth and shamanism, symbolism and the spirit, he remained grounded in the politics of racial and economic justice, the promise and potential of social change. Katharine Tyler is Lecturer in Social Anthropology in the Department of Sociology, Philosophy and Anthropology at the University of Exeter. There is no hierarchy of progress in the history of culture, no evolutionary ladder to success. The comprehensiveness of anthropology stems from its emphasis on context, reflected in the perspectives offered by the discipline's four fields: sociocultural, biological, linguistic anthropology, and archaeology. There, a coup and other circumstances turned my one-year fellowship into a two-year experience/adventure. Quite simply, just because we all take some belief or style of behavior for granted in the present, does not mean human beings everywhere, or throughout human history, would have agreed. Before any of these struggles could flourish, something fundamental, some flash of insight, had to challenge and, in time, shatter the intellectual foundations that supported archaic beliefs as irrelevant to our lives today as the notions of 19th-century clergymen, certain that the earth was but 6,000 years old. For example, in 2010 some cultural anthropologists critiqued the American Anthropological Associations mission statement, which stated that the disciplines goal was to advance anthropology as the science that studies humankind in all its aspects.[7] These scholars wanted to replace the word science with public understanding. They argued that some anthropologists do not use the scientific method of inquiry; instead, they rely more on narratives and interpretations of meaning. This type of research takes a great amount of time and effort, but produces a uniquely deep and contextual type of knowledge. The thing about perspective is that it doesn't make the problem that caused it go away. Kottak, Conrad P. Mirror for Humanity: A Concise Introduction to Cultural Anthropology. The assignment Tell me the story of your relationship with your cell phone has resulted in some of the best papers I have ever received. All animals eat, but we are the only animal that cooks. How do countries respond differently to immigration? In truth, I also considered Zoology. Knowledge awaits. Anthropologists ask questions like: How do chimpanzees differ from humans? This approach, known as cultural relativism, is an essential methodological tool for studying local life-worlds on their own terms. Another goal I have in my teaching is to illustrate that an anthropological view is useful for better coping with the world around us especially in our multi-culture, multi-racial society where ethnic diversity and immigration are politically charged and change is happening at a pace never before experienced. Being an anthropologist at a major university that doesnt have an anthropology program, I believe, gives me a unique perspective on the disciplines key virtues. Anthropology | Definition, Meaning, Branches, History, & Facts Introduction to Biological Anthropology - Explorations Womens suffrage only came in 1919. There are also both scientific and humanistic tendencies within the discipline that, at times, conflict with one another. The key anthropological perspectives are holism, relativism, comparison, and fieldwork. What is the significance of studying the three branches of anthropology 2023 Scientific American, a Division of Springer Nature America, Inc. Unlike these other disciplines, anthropologists also compare across societies, and between humans and other primates. This type of research takes a great amount of time and effort but produces a uniquely deep and contextual type of knowledge. My undergraduate experience significantly shaped my attitudes about education in general and anthropology in particular. Published Mar 18, 2016. No two people will see a situation or issue in exactly the same way . Anthropology | Anthropology, History, Political Science, & Sociology One important component of the structural-functional approach is the idea of social structure. Cultural anthropologists research is unique because it often involves analysis of the intersection of global social, political and economic forces and the everyday experiences of members of a cultural group. This is important in helping to understand how one language relates to another and how humans have communicated with one another over time. Anthropology is the antidote to nativism, the enemy of hate, a vaccine of understanding, tolerance and compassion that silences the rhetoric of demagogues, inoculating the world from the likes of. Inspired by his time among the Inuit on Baffin Island, and later the Kwakwakawakw in the salmon forests of the Pacific Northwest, he informed all who would listen that the other peoples of the world were not failed attempts to be them, failed attempts to be modern. So when you are working with people and building relationships with them, it helps to have some perspective and understanding of their cultures. What additional developments have brought communities the greatest levels of collective satisfaction, effective organization, and sustainability? 1. To address these questions, anthropologists are obligated to follow a professional code of ethics that guides us through ethical considerations in our research.[6]. Applying the results of our ethnographic research and making our research accessible to our students and the public can make the research of anthropologists useful toward alleviating the problems people face in our society, and in countries globally. To illustrate how thoroughly we are globalized, my students do an exercise called The Global Closet in which they go through everything in (or near) their closet, reading tags to see where the item was made. Beyond preparing students for a particular career, anthropology helps people develop essential skills that are transferable to many career choices and life paths. The catalyst, as Charles King reminds us, was the wisdom and scientific genius of Franz Boas and a small band of courageous scholarsMargaret Mead, Alfred Kroeber, Elsie Clews Parsons, Melville Herskovits, Edward Sapir, Robert Lowie, Ruth Benedict, Zora Neale Hurston and many others contrarians all, who came into his orbit, destined to change the world. This makes it an important tool for comprehending ourselves. Thus food becomes not just a symbol of, but the reality of, love and security. Students examples range from describing conversations with international students, exploring the cultural and economic history of tea and coffee, to seeing an evangelical church service in a new light. Beauty really does lie in the eye of the beholder. Anthropology itself is a holistic discipline, comprised in the United States (and in some other nations) of four major subfields: cultural anthropology, biological anthropology, linguistic anthropology, and archaeology. My family moved to the United States when I was still a baby; and I had witnessed my Asante mother struggle with adapting to certain aspects of life in America. We asked three cultural anthropologists Anthony Kwame Harrison, Bob Myers, and Lynn Kwiatkowski to describe what drew them to the discipline and to explain how they use anthropological perspectives in their varied research projects. Critically, none of this implied an extreme relativism, as if every human behavior must be accepted simply because it exists. Anthropology can be used to answer questions about human origins, evolution, and behavior.