Essentials of Anthropology

1. Essentials of Anthropology By: Ms. Jona Victoriano, M.A.

2. WHAT IS ANTHROPOLOGY? • Derived from two Greek words: anthropos (man) and logia or logos (study) • It is a branch of knowledge which deals with the scientific study of human,human behavior, and his society and culture. (Ramos, 2012) Margaret Mead, one of the female prime movers in the field of Anthropology is shown here with a Manus mother and child in 1953 during a visit to the Admiralty Islands.

3. BRANCHES OF ANTHROPOLOGY

4. ARCHAEOLOGY • it refers to the scientific study of humans and their history and culture, through examination of their artifacts and remains left behind.

5. CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY • Focuses on the study of human cultures, beliefs, practices, technologies, and economies. • It has two aspects: A. Ethnography- based on field- work B. Ethnology- based on cross- cultural comparison.

6. PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY • Also known as Biological Anthropology. • It is concerned with the origin, evolution, and diversity of people. • Studies humans as biological organisms and tries to differentiate humans from other species.

7. PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY TAPS FOUR SPECIFIC ASPECTS: • HUMAN EVOLUTION • HUMAN GENETICS • HUMAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT • HUMAN BIOLIGICAL PLASTICITY

8. LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY • It examines human languages , how they work, how they are made, how they change, and how they die and later revived. • It involves the study of language in its social and cultural context across space and time.

9. APPLIED ANTHROPOLOGY: FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY • Applied Anthropology is simply the practice of applying anthropological theory and/or methods to help solve social problems or to shape and achieve policy goals. • Forensic Anthropology- is the study of human skeletal remains to help determine the identity and the cause of death of the victim.

10. PRINCIPLES OF ANTHROPOLOGY

11. ACTIVITY 1: Translate these filipino tongue twisters , USING THE baybayin script. • PalakangKabkab, kumakalabukab, kaka-kalabukab pa lamang, kumakalabukabnanaman. • Mayamaya, mamamanhikansi Aman samayamangsi Maya malamangsaharap ng maramingmamamayan. • Kakakananlangsakangkungansa may kakahuyansi Ken Kenhabangkumakain ng kakaibangkakaninkahapon. • Makati sa Makati, may pari sa Aparri, mahihilo sa Iloilo at may bagyo sa Baguio. • Kalabit ng kalabitsiAlabitna may bitbitsabalikat ng kanyangkalapit-kabalikatkapitbahay. • PinaputiniTepiterio ang pitongputingputongpatung-patong. • Tumalon si Tonton sa malalim na balon sa ilalim ng talon sa taniman ng talong • Isinayawnangisinayaw ng mananayaw ang sayawnaisinasayaw ng mgamananayaw. • Sumasaway ng pasaway ang nagsasawaynasanaymagsaway. • Nagtanimnangnagtanim ang manananim ng tanimnaitinatanim ng mgamanananim.

12. QUALITATIVE DESIGN IN ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH

13. WHATS IS QUALITATIVE DESIGN OF RESEARCH? • It emphasizes understanding of social phenomena through direct observation, interviews, with the participants, and analysis of texts. • Since anthropologists’ study people, the traditional approach to science is not seen as an appropriate way of carrying out research, since it fails to capture the totality of human experience and the essence of what it is to be human.

14. THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD PROCESS

16. TECHNIQUES IN ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH

17. A. FIELDWORK • It is the process in which an investigator establishes a many-sided and relatively long term relationship with a human on its natural environment for the purpose of developing a scientific understanding of that phenomenon. • Method used: Participant Observation

18. PERSPECTIVES IN FIELD RESEARCH EMIC ETIC The etic perspective is the outsider’s perspective, the perspective that we have of a project’s parameters. EX. an outsider’s/researcher’s perception of gender in Afghanistan.   • The emic perspective is the insider’s perspective, the perspective that comes from within the culture where the project is situated. • EX.   gender perspectives of women involved in a project in Afghanistan.

19. B. INTERVIEW • It is the process of collecting research data through a face-to-face dialogue. • In this technique, the researcher talks to the people, ask questions, and write down the answers.

20. C. GENEALOGY • A technique wherein the ethnographer develops notation and symbols to deal with kinship, descent, and marriage. • Genealogy is important because it helps in understanding and reconstructing the ethnohistory of a particular family or society.

21. CONSIDERATION DURING THE CONDUCT OF INTERVIEW

22. 1. Use Open-Ended Questions • CLOSED QUESTIONS: • Examples: “Is your hair black, brown, or red?” “Are you interested in research?” • OPEN QUESTIONS: • Examples: “What color is your hair?” “What are your interests?”

23. 2. AVOID LEADING QUESTIONS • Example: Interviewer: May I know when and where you were born? May-ling: I was born in India in 1952. Interviewer: What about your current husband? May-ling: He was born in India in 1936 and came to Canada in 1937. Interviewer: Oh, your husband is much older than you, isn't he? May-ling: Yes. He is 22 years older than I. My first husband is 16 years older than I.

24. Interviewer: You don't care about the difference of age, do you? May-ling: No, I don't care about that. I like to live with an older man.

25. Ethics in anthropological research

26. RESPONSIBILITY TO PEOPLE. Preserve the anonymity of the participants in the final write-up and in field notes to prevent their identification. Researchers should distribute Prior informed consent to the potential informants to ask their permission for interview. • RESPONSIBILITY TO SCHOLARSHIP AND SCIENCE. Researchers should not intentionally deceive or misrepresent information nor fabricate evidence or plagiarize sources. • RESPONSIBILITY TO THE PUBLIC. Results of the research should be available anytime to the public. Research output should be disseminated in any conferences, seminars, forums, or trainings.

27. ACTIVITY NO. 2:RECONSTRUCTING YOUR GENEALOGY OR FAMILY TREE • INSTRUCTIONS: ON A ¼ SIZED ILLUSTRATION BOARD, RETRACE YOUR FAMILY LINEAGE BOTH FROM YOUR MOTHER AND FATHER’S SIDE BY INTERVIEWING YOUR PARENTS. RETRACE YOUR LINEAGE UP TO THREE GENERATIONS BACK. • IN YOUR FAMILY TREE, PUT THE NAMES OF THE FAMILY MEMBERS, THEIR SPOUSES, AND THEIR CHILDREN COUPLED BY THE DATE OF THEIR BIRTH AND DEATH. • MAKE YOUR GENEALOGY AS PLEASANT AS POSSIBLE BY DECORATING IT. CREATIVITY COMPRISES 50% OF YOUR FINAL SCORE FOR THIS ACTIVITY.