In 2011, when I first began my career as a researcher in the context of business and design, I knew almost nothing about the field I had decided to work in. I lacked a basic understanding of how products are designed, how businesses work, and how to work with people in this world. What I…
Anthropologists serve as interlocutors of diverse cultural paradigms, interrogating, recontextualizing, and ultimately enmeshing them in a “rigorous formulation” to close the gaps in divergent models and language practices between business and anthropology. It is unfortunate, then, that theory and analysis is rarely ever given its due credit in business domains.
New strategies and trends in business and design that derive from anthropological origins are presented as efforts to empathize with users and consumers by walking in their shoes. However, researchers that have been educated in a four-field anthropology program have developed habits of thought for analyzing what is generally accepted or understood and expand or reframe social and cultural knowledge through theoretical and conceptual frameworks.
With the advent and proliferation of digital technologies into nearly every facet of life today there is almost no research topic in the modern world that doesn’t include a virtual or technological component. While these practices raise issues of privacy and power, the notion that vast amounts of data can be automatically and immediately collected with little cost or training is an alluring proposition for many businesses.
A case for applied anthropology PhDs. The struggle is real. Are you one of these PhDs? Do you have a master’s a decided not to get a doctorate? We’d love to hear your stories. Big data is thin. Make it thick with ethnography. A fun, ethnographic read about how cooking on open flames can teach you…
Dr. Paul Stoller is asking American society to think about creating a more inclusive set of cultural values that accounts for our diverse and even still rapidly diversifying society. Gotta find them all? Anthropologists have partnered with a computer scientist to design a facial recognition system for… LEMURS! Sociologist Sarah Thorton uses ethnography to document…
The last week and a half have been pretty intense. I hope you can find a brief respite in hearing about the good work of our fellow colleagues. I cannot wait to see the results of the Human Generosity Project. In such divided times, I can think of no better question than under what conditions…
Normalizing “ethnography” as a business tool See passing mentions of ethnography as a business tool in The Memphis Daily News, American Society of Mechanical Engineers Proceedings (2016), Crain’s Detroit Business, and a comparison of journalism and “anthropology” from The Nieman Lab. AI, Technology, and Humans Forbes summarizes Rebecca Gibson’s (American U.) recent article in Sexuality…
Practicing Anthropology The Wall Street Journal gives passing mention to ethnography as a marketing research tool, in an article about how election polling that missed Middle America’s votes for Trump may indicate similar advertising research has similar limitations. Seeking Alpha goes further, proclaiming that “[e]thnography is probably the only way to gather accurate data” for…
Politics, Domestic and Foreign Paul Stoller (West Chester U.) argues for ethnography as one of the weapons available to those fighting against the anti-progressive movement represented by Donald Trump’s election. Journalists use an anthropological lens in a documentary film of the Trump Tribe, and attempt to understand the beliefs and motivations of Trump supporters during…
Trick or Treat?Anthropologists Discover Isolated Tribe Of Joyful Americans Living In Remote Village Untouched By 2016 Election. From The Onion. Sam Migliore (Kwantlen Polytechnic U.) is interviewed by the local newspaper in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada about an ethnography of zombies. Yes, he knows a few. Phillips Stevens, Jr. (U. of Buffalo) is interviewed by…
Anthropologist Bloggers WantedFellow anthropologist bloggers (and aspiring bloggers), note two opportunities to expand your reach: Anthropology News is looking for columnists to address “hot topics” in the news. Send a 300-word pitch by October 21st. The Guardian is expanding the scope of their science blog network to include archaeology and anthropology. Proposals, or nominations of…
The National Association For The Practice of Anthropology is a section of The American Anthropological Association (AAA) – contact GC
