Handbook Of Methods In Cultural Anthropology

Features

Description

The Handbook of Methods in Cultural Anthropology, now in its second edition, maintains a strong benchmark for understanding the scope of contemporary anthropological field methods. Avoiding divisive debates over science and humanism, the contributors draw upon both traditions to explore fieldwork in practice.

The second edition also reflects major developments of the past decade, including: the rising prominence of mixed methods, the emergence of new technologies, and evolving views on ethnographic writing. Spanning the chain of research, from designing a project through methods of data collection and interpretive analysis, the Handbook features new chapters on ethnography of online communities, social survey research, and network and geospatial analysis.

Considered discussion of ethics, epistemology, and the presentation of research results to diverse audiences round out the volume. The result is an essential guide for all scholars, professionals, and advanced students who employ fieldwork. Review: Editors Bernard and Gravlee focus on the core aspect: fieldwork.

The second edition of this handbook is organized into four parts: 'Perspectives,' 'Acquiring Information,' 'Interpreting Information,' and 'Applying and Presenting Information. The 23 chapters were each separately authored; some are by well-known anthropologists and others by those not so well-known.

All have lengthy reference lists...Nevertheless, the excellent essays certainly will be of use to experts wanting to expand their repertoire and to novices. Contributors cover topics ranging from epistemology to survey methods and from the classic participant observation to contemporary fieldwork in online environments.

This highly readable collection will appeal to undergraduate and graduate students alike and be a useful addition to college and university libraries collecting in the social sciences. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through researchers/faculty. CHOICE This significantly expanded second edition is bound to become the quintessential reference book for every anthropologist engaged in active field research.

With sixteen updated chapters and eight entirely new ones-on topics ranging from online ethnography to GIS to public anthropology-this volume is a treasure trove of sound methodological strategies imparted by leading figures in the discipline. A must-read for everyone from graduate students headed for the field to established academics and applied anthropologists. -- Marcia Inhorn, Yale University; former president, Society of Medical Anthropology (2005-2007) A timely update that provides rich and in-depth overviews on contemporary methods in cultural anthropology.

Each chapter is written by experts in the particular methodology, making this second edition an excellent companion to Bernard's Research Methods in Anthropology. -- Douglas W. Hume, Northern Kentucky University; Treasurer, Society for Anthropological Sciences I challenge any anthropologist to read this expanded second edition and not contemplate adding one of the described methods to his or her own toolbox.

The chapters invite us to reflect upon the nuances of our methodological choices and encourage us to move beyond a polarizing divide between quantitative and qualitative research-to embrace the no-longer-stranger notion that both may contribute to the anthropologists' craft. This new edition is easily classified as essential reading. -- M.

Cameron Hay, Miami University; author, Remembering to Live: Illness at the Intersection of Anxiety and Knowledge in Rural Indonesia