This course is an introduction to the field of Anthropology. As a broad and diverse discipline, Anthropology aims to construct a holistic understanding of the human species by integrating research on the cultural, biological, evolutionary, linguistic and historical aspects of our kind. Anthropology’s array of sub-disciplines contributes to this in different ways. Biological Anthropology aims to understand the origin and evolution of our species using fossils, material remains (stone tools), and genetics. By studying monkeys and apes, primatologists contribute both insights into the life ways of our ancestors, and important perspectives on those aspects of our bodies and minds that make our species such a unique part of nature. Archaeologists trace our ancient history by studying the spread of humans across the globe and the emergence of agriculture, complex societies, and “civilizations”. Sociocultural and linguistic anthropologists study living cultures and languages close up, usually by living as a member of a particular human community. In the process they document in detail the incredible diversity of human life ways, modes of thought, beliefs and languages. By focusing on diversity, this works lays a foundation for understanding the universal underpinning of our societies, cultures, and languages. (Undergraduate)

 

Psychological anthropology is a rapidly expanding subfield of anthropology that seeks to simultaneously understand how reliably developing (pan human) aspects of human minds influence the transmission and dynamics of culture, thought and behavior, and how, in turn, cultural patterns and environment shape minds, emotions and cognitive processes. This course will emphasize recent theoretical approaches that allow us to transcend debates such as “nature vs. nurture” and “human universals” to examine human minds as joint products of three interactive processes: genetic evolution, cultural evolution (history) and ontogeny (development and learning).  (Undergraduate)

 

How important is culture in our species? Does culture really affect how we think, remember, and perceive the world? Does it influence what we think is morally right and wrong, what causes an illness, which products we want to buy, and which god(s) to believe in? How do individuals actually learn culture? Who do people learn their culture from? Building on the answers to these psychological questions, we will use case studies from anthropology and applied fields such as public health, education, and business to address questions such as (1) Why do cultures change at different rates? (2) Why do some technologies, beliefs and practices spread rapidly and completely while others don’t? (3) Why do some peoples refuse to adopt (seemingly) obviously beneficial technologies, beliefs and practices, while readily adopting seemingly harmful behaviors, beliefs and practices? (Undergraduate)

 

This course will utilize a biocultural perspective to inform our understanding of cross-cultural variation and similarity in human social life. It will draw on comparative ethnography, primatology and human biology. Various theoretical perspectives will be considered, such as cultural models, life history theory, evolutionary psychology, and cultural evolutionary theory. Topics will include: (1) human universals, (2) kinship, (3) pair-bonding and marriage, (4) incest and the incest taboo, (5) homosexuality, (6) emotions, (7) reciprocity, (8) cooperation and social norms, (9) social status, (10) patriarchy, matriarchy and sexual inequity, (11) social inequality, egalitarianism, and within-group violence, (12) Intergroup violence and war, (13) infanticide and suicide. (Graduate)

 

Culture is a product of human minds, and human minds are a product of culture. To understand this empirical fact, this course explores how three interrelated dynamic processes-genetic evolution, cultural evolution and ontogeny (development and learning)-give rise to human cognition, emotion, behavior, beliefs, modes of induction, mental models and mechanisms of learning. Using theory and data from a wide range of subdisciplines, ranging from traditional psychological anthropology and ethnography to cognitive psychology and evolutionary anthropology, we will examine question such as (1) What aspects of culture are influenced by reliably developing (i.e., pan human) aspects of the human mind? (2) How can we understand both the cognitive and social aspects of cultural transmission? (3) How do the reliably developing aspects of the human mind combine with our capacities for social learning to produce the amazing diversity of cultural patterns we observe in the world? (Graduate)

 

Field and Analytical Methods in Anthropology 

This is a hands-on course designed to introduce students to anthropological methods in data collection and analysis. The course emphasizes practical applications and the effective integration of ethnographic, experimental and analytical tools. Data collection topics will include ethnographic interviewing, cognitive tasks (pile sorts, triads, and paired comparisons), experimental decision-making games, social network elicitation, ethological observation, and time allocation. Analytical techniques will include some basic statistics, content analysis, social networks, cultural consensus modeling, and reflexive analytics. (Graduate)