ANTH Anthropological Theory and Methods 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which theoretical perspective, associated with Bronisław Malinowski and A.R. Radcliffe-Brown, argues that cultural practices exist to serve the functional needs of society?
- Functionalism (Correct answer)
- Structuralism
- Evolutionism
- Diffusionism
Correct answer: Functionalism
Functionalism holds that every cultural element serves a function that contributes to the stability or survival of the social system.
Question 2: What is the primary method of data collection in cultural anthropology, involving long-term immersive fieldwork within a community?
- Participant observation (Correct answer)
- Structured interviews
- Questionnaire surveys
- Archival research
Correct answer: Participant observation
Participant observation involves an anthropologist living within a community over an extended period, participating in daily life while systematically observing behavior.
Question 3: Which theoretical school, associated with Claude Lévi-Strauss, argues that underlying mental structures organize cultural phenomena like myths and kinship systems?
- Structuralism (Correct answer)
- Functionalism
- Cultural materialism
- Symbolic anthropology
Correct answer: Structuralism
Structuralism, as developed by Lévi-Strauss, identifies universal mental structures (binary oppositions) that organize myths, rituals, and social systems.
Question 4: What term describes the detailed, richly contextualized description of a culture or cultural phenomenon, introduced by Clifford Geertz?
- Thick description (Correct answer)
- Deep ethnography
- Dense cultural analysis
- Interpretive mapping
Correct answer: Thick description
Clifford Geertz coined 'thick description' to mean interpretive ethnographic accounts that place behaviors within their cultural context and web of meaning.
Question 5: The principle that anthropologists should analyze cultures on their own terms, without imposing outside value judgments, is called:
- Cultural relativism (Correct answer)
- Ethnocentrism
- Moral universalism
- Emic analysis
Correct answer: Cultural relativism
Cultural relativism holds that a culture's beliefs and practices should be understood within their own context rather than judged by the standards of another culture.
Question 6: In anthropological fieldwork, what is an 'emic' perspective?
- An insider's view of a culture, using the categories and meanings of the people being studied (Correct answer)
- An outsider's analytical view of a culture using scientific categories
- A comparative view across multiple cultures
- A historical view of cultural change over time
Correct answer: An insider's view of a culture, using the categories and meanings of the people being studied
The emic perspective captures how cultural insiders interpret and categorize their own world, contrasted with the 'etic' perspective of outside observers.
ANTH Anthropological Theory and Methods 1
Which theoretical perspective, associated with Bronisław Malinowski and A.R.
Radcliffe-Brown, argues that cultural practices exist to serve the functional needs of society?