Test 1 Study Guide

1) Confirmation Bias
a) a type of selective thinking whereby one tends to notice and to look for what
confirms one's beliefs
2) Anthropology
a) exploration of human diversity and changes in what it means to be human
across space and time
b) study of human nature, human society, the human past and our immediate
ancestors
3) Holistic
a) all facts of shared human behavior-past, present, and future, society, biology,
language and culture
b) trying to understand without being culture-bound and for comparative
purposes
4) Comparative approach
a) compare aspects of human existence across cultures and time, economy,
culture, etc
5) Ethnocentrism
a) interpret using own cultural categories
b) viewing ones own culture as superior
6) Cultural Relativism
a) question our own assumptions, recognize all cultural categories
b) **Cultural relativism is a methological position NOT moral position**
c) states that it is not appropriate to use outside standards to judge behavior in
a given society
7) Ethnography
a) the study of the differences and similarities in different societies
b) collecting data from smaller/local settings
8) Unstructured interviews
a) open questions, open answers
9) Semi-structured interviews
a) fixed questions, open answers
10)
Questionnaire
a) quantitative stats
11)
Participant Observation
a) type of interaction with people to learn about them
12)
Free lists & pile sorts
a) type of exercise in participating with people

13)
Anthropometry
a) the scientific study of the measurements and proportions of the human body
14)
Clinic methods
a)
15)
Informed consent
a) required ethically
16)
Enculturation
a) process by which culture is learned
b) process of socialization that helps a person to acquire social norms, values,
behaviors, language and other tools of the culture that surrounds him in a
society
17)
a)
b)
c)
d)

Acculturation
relearned culture
biased transmission
the exchange of cultural features through continuous contact
modification of a culture through interaction with a different culture

18)
Critical Period
a) Chomsky
b) early infancy, teen years
19)
Phonology
a) sounds
20)
Phoneme
a) minimal unit of sound with no meaning alone, yet distinguishable
b) p and b in pit and bit
21)
Morphology
a) how sounds combine
22)
Morpheme
a) units of sound and meaning, not a word alone but has meaning
b) s in cats
23)
Genotype
a) actual alleles in the genes (genetic makeup)
24)
Phenotype
a) the physical characteristics
25)
Syntax
a) how sentences are formed and rules governing their order
26)

Semantics

a) lexical meaning of words

b) phrasal meaning of combinations of words
27)
Historical Linguistics
a) language change over time
28)
Sociolinguistics
a) language and social structure
29)
Psycholinguistics
a) study of language and the mind
30)
Universal Grammar
a) Chomsky
31)
Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
a) language constrains thought and culture
b) languages people speak influence the way they think
32)
Linguistic Relativity
a) the concept that people perceive objects, events, and relationships in time
and space based on grammatical forms provided by their language
33)
Achieved identity
a) identity arrived at through life choices or actions
34)
Ascribed identity
a) identity that society or others may assign to or impose based on traits born
with
35)
a)
b)
c)

Identity
culture, language
essentialist - assume ethnicity, tribe, race is inherited, static, and biological
instrumental/constructivist identity is created based on social, political,
cultural resources; flexible and manipulative
i) instrumental master race, Aryans vs. Dravidians, Hutu and Tutsi
ii) constructivist Segmentary opposition

36)
Hypodescent
a) the automatic assignment of children of a mixed union or mating between
members of different socioeconomic groups or ethnic groups to the
subordinate group
37)
Segmentary Opposition
a) constructivist
b) Atlanta vs. Athens
38)

Invented Traditions

39)

Sex

a) biological categories, physical traits born with

40)
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)

Gender
cultural categories
learned
labor/role stratification
expected sexuality
Fa'afafine, Samoa 3rd gender

41)
Gender roles
a) tasks and activities that a certain gender does
42)
Gender Expression
a) actions, dress, demeanor, etc
43)
Gender Identity
a) sexuality, work roles, ritual roles, gender stratification, age
b) ones psychological definition of gender, may not correspond with biological
sex
44)

Sexual Preference

45)
Sexual Dimorphism
a) biological differences (beyond primary and secondary sexual characteristics)
such as height, strength, longevity
46)
Intersex
a) a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesnt seem to
fit the typical definitions of female or male
47)
a)
b)
c)

Culture
shared human behavior
a societys socially transmitted ideas, values, and perceptions
bounded and flexible

48)
Evolution
a) human biological change
b) genetic change over successive generations
49)
a)
b)
c)

Four fields of anthropology

cultural customs, habits, symbols, ideas, behaviors, etc
linguistics symbols, idioms, discourses
biological anatomy, physiology, health, nutrition, growth, development,
genetics
d) anthropological archaeology all of above, in the past

50)
Two dimensions
a) academic anthropology grant and university research
b) applied practical application

51)
Etic perspective
a) scientific, outsiders view
52)
Emic perspective
a) native perspective, insiders view
b) popular
53)
a)
b)
c)
d)

Four communication styles humans and primates share

transmission: teaching
productivity: create words and ideas
displacement: knowing time
lies and humor

54)
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)

Human language has

productivity
displacement
lies and humor
grammar and syntax
symbolism

55)
Environmentalist perspective
a) humans have a generalized intelligence
56)
Innatist perspective
a) humans have a specialized intelligence born with certain cognitive abilities
57)
Categories in Elman Services typology
a) bands- no economy, ideology, or military power; low population; no leaders;
mobile; hunters and gatherers
b) tribes- no economic or military power, moderate ideology, pastoralism and
horticulture, gender stratification
c) chiefdoms- no economic power, moderate military, high ideology, inherited
titles, royal clans, agriculture and pastoralism, social classes
d) states- agriculture, large scale specialized production
58)
Methods of social analysis
a) settlement analysis
i) regional studies
ii) site-specific studies
iii) settlement hierarchy (bottom to top): hamlets villages local
regional centers
b) burial analysis
c) monuments and public works
d) written records
59)
Bottom-up
a) perception starts at the sensory input
b) interpretation from the senses, not by your expectations
60)

Top-down

a) development of pattern recognition through the use of contextual information

b) expectations will influence perception
61)
a)
b)
c)

Absolute dating
specific units of measurements (days, years, etc)
gives a specific date, or a date that is specific within a given margin of error
ex. 1623 BC

62)
Relative dating
a) dated by reference to other objects or strata
63)
a)
b)
c)

Classic typology
neglects history
hinders real understanding
conflicts with self-identity

64)
Historical particularism
a) each society is a collective representation of its unique historical past
65)
Hegemong
a) imperial rule (indirect), implied power
66)
a)
b)
c)

Ways of observing people

participant observation
time allocation observation
observe surroundings

67)
Constructivism
a) identities are defined in opposition to other identities
b) people divide themselves from others based on levels of differences and
similarities they perceive and construct
68)
Instrumentalism
a) identities are deliberately created for political purpose
69)
Race
a) socially constructed
b) not determined by biology but by shared cultural values
70)
Berlin & Kay
a) step 1: elicit the basic color categories recognized by a particular group
b) step 2: identify the focal hue of each basic color category
71)
Race
a) humans do not have biological races because human variation is usually
continuous and synchronous
b) groupings based on biological differences
72)
Race variations
a) discrete- grouping very clearly done

b) continuous- skin color is ex.

c) synchronous- certain traits associated with other traits
d) human-like variation- traits vary asynchronously
73)
Ethnicity
a) grouping people based on cultural differences and cultural identities
74) Steps to conducting ethnographic research
a) Research proposal
b) Funding
c) IRB ethical treatment
d) Permissions, visas
e) Buy stuff
f) Fieldwork usually 1 year
g) Data entry, analysis
h) Write up, publish

What is the study of anthropology?

study of human nature, human society, the human past and our immediate
ancestors
Why is anthropology a holistic and comparative study?
concerned with all human beings across times and places, and with all
dimensions of humanity
covers human cultural and biological diversity, and evolution
comparative because compares societies and cultures to other societies and
cultures, it develops a cross-cultural understanding of humanity
holistic because it looks at the big picture--rather than focusing on one
narrow aspect of a culture, it looks at culture as a whole to try and
understand something about how people live
How does Miners article on the NACIREMA help us critically analyze the concept
of culture?
helps us gain perspective on how others view our culture
looks at our culture in a less ethnocentric way
Why was the video on the Lost Boys of Sudan important to watch? What does
it teach about culture?
helped highlight how different cultures are and how different things we take
for granted are in other cultures
What are the key concepts that define culture?
ethnicity, social status, economic status, symbols, values, rituals, heroes,
myths
What are the key concepts of evolution?
natural selection, Darwin, change over time, anatomical evidence

How do culture and biology interact?

Four fields of anthropology and their descriptions
What is applied anthropology?
What is academic anthropology?

What are the main methods cultural anthropologists use?

What is ethnography and what does ethnographic fieldwork entail?
the study of the differences and similarities in different societies
fieldwork in and about a particular living culture
What are the steps to conducting ethnographic research?
research proposal
funding
IRB
permissions, visas
buy stuff
fieldwork
data entry, analyze
write up, publish
How do you learn about people?
talk with people, participate with people, observe people, observe
peoples surroundings
What are the main methods biological anthropologists use?
anthropometry and clinic methods (blood pressure, hormone assays)
What is enculturation and acculturation? Give examples.
enculturation- process of socialization that helps a person to acquire social
norms, values, behaviors, language and other tools of the culture that
surrounds him in a society
mom teaching child to use utensils when eating
acculturation- process of socialization that takes place whenever there is a
meeting of two different cultures
child moving to China and slowly getting used to their culture
Why can culture be both adaptive and maladaptive?
humans have biological and cultural ways of coping with environmental
stress
whats good for individual isnt necessarily good for group
Linguistic anthropologists study which three major features of language? List and
describe.
structure
phonology- sounds
phenome- minimal unit of sound with no meaning yet distinguishable
morphology- how sounds combine
morpheme- units of sounds and meaning, not word alone but has meaning
attached

 syntax- how sentences are formed and rules governing that order
meaning
semantics- lexical and phrasal
pragmatics- meanings in context (ex. sarcasm)
context
historical linguistics- language change over time
sociolinguistics- language and social structure
psycholinguistics- study of language and the mind
What are the main features that comprise language? Identify and describe.
productivity- ability to create a range of understandable expression from
finite rules
displacement- ability to refer to events and issues beyond the immediate
present (only human language..)
lies and humor
grammar and syntax- existence of rules that govern the ordering of words
symbolism
What is the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis? What is the modern interpretation?
says language constrains thought and culture, but modern view says words
and structures et guideposts but do not ultimately constrain peoples
thoughts
What is linguistic relativity?
the concept that people perceive objects, events, and relationships in time
and space based on grammatical forms provided by their language
Berlin and Kay article (be able to describe and have evidence from
article)
How is Berlin and Kays article a challenge to linguistic relativity?
Do all languages have the same color categories?
Do all languages have the same focal colors?
What are the different forms of identity?
ethnicity, tribe, race
nationality
religion
class, social status
subculture, interest group
kinship, family, descent
occupation
gender
What is style-shifting?
shifting style choices depending on social context
How is identity relative?
ones identity can be based off a certain aspect in terms of another group

 ex. poor compared to a celebrity but rich compared to a homeless person

What is achieved and ascribed identity?
achieved- identity arrived at through life choices or actions
ascribed- identity as given by others/society based on traits born with
What is an essentialist explanation for identity?
theory that ideas and skills basic to a culture should be taught to all alike by
time-tested methods
What is hypodescent?
the automatic assignment of children of a mixed union or mating between
members of different socioeconomic groups or ethnic groups to the
subordinate group
What is the instrumental/constructivist explanation for identity?
identity is created based on social, political, cultural resources; flexible and
manipulative
How is Segmentary opposition an example?
it looks at the difference/comparison of two regions (big or small)
ex. Athens vs Atlanta
What is an invented tradition with regard to identity? What are the
historical ramification of past invented traditions (eg Rwanda)?
situations when a new practice or object is introduced in a manner that
implies a connection with the past that is not necessarily present
Southalls The Illusion of Tribe article
Why cant we define tribe easily?
Why is the term tribe complex?
What are the three problems associated with concept of tribe according to
Southall?
problems of illusion (false application of concepts)
problems of definition (ambiguous or conflicting definitions)
problems of transition and transformation (use of concept of tribe
unjustifiably)
What are traditional Western stereotypes of gender?
males are expected to be independent, assertive, and competitive;
females are expected to be more passive, sensitive, and supportive
How are sex and gender related to one another?
sex is a biological determinant, based on your genes
gender is the social meaning of sex
How is gender expressed individually?
How does gender identity manifest in society?
manifested within society by observable factors such as behavior and
appearance

 ex. if a person considers himself a male and is most comfortable referring to

his personal gender in masculine terms, then his gender identity is male.
However, his gender role is male only if he demonstrates typically male
characteristics in behavior, dress, and/or mannerisms.
How is gender learned and reinforced?
media and people (eg. parents) teach and reinforce it when children confirm
to gender expectations
How does gender impact labor, roles, expected sexuality? (identify in own
society how gender roles, stereotypes, and stratification are perpetuated)
What are some different societies interpretations of gender? How do these differ
from traditional Western approach?
some societies have a third gender that is looked at the same way as male
and female (Hijra and Faafafine)