Anthropology Commons^™

Motives And Methods Of Social Mobilization In Rural Senegal, Antonia Morzenti

Capstone Collection

Senegal, a predominantly Muslim West African country, has demonstrated political stability, sustained a constitutional democracy, and maintained a pluralistic society since independence in 1960. Amidst this, there are several small groups of social organizers who are engaging in effective social change. Tostan, a regional INGO focusing on community empowerment through nonformal education, has been working in Senegal for more than 25 years and has reached more than three million people in West Africa. After completing Tostan’s Community Empowerment Program (CEP), the social organizers have decided to travel from village to village educating and sensitizing others on what they have learned. …

Forced Motherhood? An Ethnographic Study On State Gender Expectations In Nicaragua, Mikaela M. Mendoza-Cardenal

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The dominant Sandinista party discourse of Nicaragua designates the family as the country’s base social institution, but the prevailing machismo threatens the family’s structure. Men - fathers - leave, either literally as migrant laborers or in the abandonment of their family responsibilities. In order to counteract the men’s socially sanctioned absence, the state deploys a hegemonic expectation of motherhood in the passage of its complete abortion ban, one of the strictest in the world. All forms of abortion, including saving the life of the mother, are banned in Nicaragua and both doctors and women are heavily penalized if an abortion …

Wildlife And Local Community Investigation In Trans-Boundary Area Between China-Mongolia Borders, Weikang Yang, Wenxuan Xu, Canjun Xia, Wei Liu, Xingyi Gao

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

During June 2008, and August and December 2010, we investigated both the status of wildlife and local human communities in the great Gobi trans-boundary area between China and Mongolia. We surveyed Baytik Mountain (called Baitag Bogdt on the Mongolian side of the border)( 44°59′ - 45°21′N，90°30′ - 90°53′E), which is located in the West of Great Gobi B strict protected area (GGB) and connected with Dzungarian Gobi. The Kazakh shepherds still maintain their nomadic life here in Baytik Mountains. The region was divided into summer, winter and transitional pasture, and most of the livestock were goats and sheep. We also …

Stewarding Our Mountains: A Program Evaluation Of Place-Based Service Learning On The Appalachian Trail, Bonnie Jean Harvey

Anthropology Theses

Appalachians’ relationships with the environment alter over time due to political, economic, and ecological factors. These changing relationships, for instance rural agrarian livelihoods shifting to urban contexts, can influence how an individual perceives personal responsibility in regional environmental stewardship, such as caring for and preserving local ecology. Observing that recent shifts resulted in less perceived youth stewardship for the Appalachian Trail (AT), the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) created the Trail to Every Classroom (TTEC) program in 2006. The TTEC program attempts to foster stewardship through the practice of place-based service learning - a diversification of education where youth learn through …

A Problematic Test Of The Kin Selection Hypothesis Among The Urak-Lawoi Of Ko Lipe, Thailand: Commentary On Camperio Ciani, Battaglia, And Liotta (2015), Paul L. Vasey, Doug P. Vanderlaan, Raymond Hames, Amornthep Jaidee

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

Camperio Ciani et al. argued that the Urak-Lawoi people of Ko Lipe island live in a ‘‘traditional,’’ ‘‘subsistence primitive society’’ reminiscent of the ‘‘ancestral’’ human past and that their socio-cultural situation is ‘‘remarkably similar’’ to Samoa. On this basis, they asserted that the Ko Lipe Urak-Lawoi are an appropriate population for determining the role that kin selection played in the evolution of male androphilia. The purpose of this commentary is to outline some of our concerns with this characterization and with the statistical analyses conducted by Camperio Ciani et al. in their study of the Urak-Lawoi.

Paleoindians, Proboscideans, And Phytotoxins: Exploring The Feasibility Of Poison Hunting During The Last Glacial-Interglacial Transition, Alan J. Osborn

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

Archaeologists have long envisioned direct encounters between Paleoindians and megafauna of the Last Glacial-Interglacial Transition (LGIT, 15–11.5 cal BP). Debate continues regarding the role that these Paleoindian hunters played in the extinction event(s). Archaeologists, paleontologists, and paleobiologists have proposed that Paleoindians proved to be very effective hunters who employed darts and spears tipped with razorsharp, chipped-stone projectile points. These weapons are assumed to have been capable of inflicting mortal wounds and death as a result of massive blood loss. Few archaeologists, however, have considered the possible use of hunting poisons, as well as the implications of poison use for past …

Ethnography Of Parkland Students: How Do Students Judge Others Based On Their Apparel?, Lori Armstrong

Independent Honors Projects

In this brief ethnographic study, the student sets out to reinvestigate the findings of a previous student project focusing on Parkland student’s tendency to judge others based on their attire. Data collection for the two studies were similar: photos representing styles of dress, and participant interviews. However, this study included examples of styles of dress for men in addition to styles of dress for women. Where the first project concluded that students did not tend to judge, this student’s survey showed contradictory results, with more negative judgement being placed on the photos presenting women than those presenting men. The author …

The Voluntourism Encounter: Affect, Discomfort, And Transformation In Yaxunah, Caroline Tegeler

Honors Theses

Within the massive tourism and travel industry, the niche market of volunteer tourism has risen recently in both notoriety and popularity with its promises of a more conscious form of experiencing the world and its people. I explore in this thesis project the encounter between volunteer tourist and host community by examining the motivations, expectations, and imagined roles and identities of each side of the voluntourism encounter. The volunteer tourism industry frames voluntourism as a path towards a more personal, ethical and responsible tourism, but has created experiences filled with discomfort for tourists in their encounter with the communities in …

The Future Of Arabic Music: No Sound Without Silence, Nesma Magdy Khodier Vcuq

Theses and Dissertations

For centuries, Arabic music has been intrinsically linked to Arab culture and by extension bonded to the environmental landscape of the region, reflecting their emotions, moods, and behaviors. Numerous technological advancements in the latter half of the twentieth century, have greatly affected the rich legacy of Arabic music, significantly impacting the natural progression of traditional Arabic musical genres, scales, and instrumentation.

This thesis serves as an introduction to generative methods of music production, specifically music generated through gestures. Through generative music, and its unique ability to map gestures to different musical parameters, music can be produced using computer algorithms.

The …

Reciprocity As A Species Of Fairness: Completing Malinowski’S Theory Of Law, James M. Donovan

Law Faculty Books and Chapters

The present essay seeks to recast Malinowski’s arguments grounding law in the social phenomena of reciprocity in light of current information. Reciprocity is argued to be a higher order construct built out of more basic influences, the most relevant of which are the inherent fairness evaluations humans perform in contexts of distributive justice. Deconstructing Malinowski’s claims into these elemental components preserves the original insight that explains the civil law in terms of social reciprocity. More importantly, this analysis generates a description for the criminal law in these same terms, something Malinowski himself was unable to achieve. The outcome realizes his …

Ann Arbor And The Ann Arbor Public Schools: A Cultural Geography, Lisa R. Anglin

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to understand the persisting disparity in academic achievement between Caucasian and African American students within the Ann Arbor Public School District. This research analyzed the historical and geographical evolution of the city of Ann Arbor, specific to the organization of its public schools. This study sought to define the dominant cultural groups of Ann Arbor, how they evolved, as well as how they migrated to the region. In addition, a critical component of this study was to explain the relationship between the cultural geography of Ann Arbor and structure of the school organization, which …

“Becoming Ioway: Using Auto-Ethnography To Understand The Fourteen Ioways’ Journey Of Colonization, Spirituality And Traditions Through Tribal Dance Exhibitions, Sarita R. Mc Gowan

Pitzer Senior Theses

This thesis analyzes the colonization and traditional spiritual practices of the Ioway people to show that their traditions have survived the effects of colonization also known as white settlers. I focus on issues of cultural traditional exhibition dance and that complicates the question of the nation-state’s exclusively trying to dissemble the Native Ioway Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska of colonization and the effects on the Ioway people past and present. I use personal experience of being a tribal member to discuss how the tribes’ oral history allows for the preservation of Ioway cultural identity and religious traditions.

Empires Of The Turning Tide: A History Of Lewis And Clark National Historical Park And The Columbia-Pacific Region, Douglas Deur

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

This book illuminates the history of the many people who together have called this region home, and their relationships with the park landscapes, waters, and natural resources that continue to set the Columbia-Pacific region apart.

The Making Of Seaside’S “Indian Place”: Contested And Enduring Native Spaces On The Nineteenth Century Oregon Coast, Douglas Deur

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

During the mid nineteenth century, non-Native settlement and activities disrupted and changed historic Chinook and Clatsop communities at the mouth of the Columbia River. Indian Place in what would be Seaside, Oregon, became home to a number of displaced peoples and an enclave where “the living gathered with the remains of the dead,” for “modest protection from the apocalyptic changes that so radically disrupted tribal lands, lives, and worldviews.” Douglas Deur documents tribal migration to the Indian Place during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and calls attention to many of its significant early residents. Transitional communities such as …

Healing The Social Body After Assisted Reproduction, Cvetana Cindy Golusin

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation is concerned with the lived experiences of ten women after having children with In Vitro Fertilization. I examine the reshaped subjectivities that emerge within the women’s everyday life experiences to deepen understandings of human agency by exploring the intersection of assisted reproductive technologies, cultural ideologies, and social interactions as components in the transformation of the women’s identity. The experience of in vitro fertilization offered a fertile place in which to examine the roles that social and interpretive practices play in constituting the subjective experience in recasting a women’s identity. The study design consisted of informant interviews and case …

"Treat Everybody Right:" Multidimensional Foodways In Detroit, Alex B. Hill

Wayne State University Theses

Detroit is assumed to be a “food desert” even with contradicting evidence. With fruits and vegetables available at each of Detroit’s 70+ independent grocery stores, there remains a lack of understanding in consumer preference and perception of nutritional access. It was reported in 2010 that upwards of $200 million in grocery spending leaves the City of Detroit. Throughout the months of July to September 2014, 73 Detroit residents participated in focus groups and group interviews to discuss food purchasing habits and perceptions of food access. Of the 73 participants, 51 completed a Food Purchasing and Eating Patterns (FPEP) survey which …

Grassroots Activists And Movements Against Female Genital Mutilation And Cutting Bridged With Political Alliances : Agency Power And The Potential To Bring About Change, Aisha Kearney

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

In this thesis I highlight grassroots activists and social movements/mobilization against FGM/C throughout some of the regions where it's concentrated, and consider the political alliances that have aided these activists and their movements towards declines in the prevalence of the practice. I consider the recent outlawing of the practice in the Gambia (last year) which was strongly motivated by grassroots activists originally from the Gambia and the transnational political alliances they were able to form. I examine activists and movements in Senegal, paying particular attention to the approach of NGO TOSTAN. I also highlight long standing histories of grassroots activism …

The Push And Pull Of Language Ideologies : Multilingual Communicative Practices Among Youths In An Indonesian City, Kristian Tamtomo

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This thesis deals with the use of Javanese, Bahasa Indonesia and English in the spoken and written communication of high school youths in the city of Semarang, Central Java. The thesis aims to understand the patterns in which youths make use of these languages in various communicative contexts and the way youths use languages to either enact or negotiate the polycentric "push and pull" of the various language ideologies associated with local, national, and global language. Data collection was conducted using ethnographic methods, which involved participant observation, recordings of conversations, collection of texts, as well as interviews with youth groups …

Prisons And Power : Carceral Coloniality In Hybrid Post-Neoliberal Venezuela, Cory Fischer-Hoffman

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This dissertation examines contemporary Venezuela’s dual prison system--in which half of the prison population is incarcerated in internally controlled prisons run by armed inmates, and the other half are locked up in the Bolivarian Government’s restricted “New Regime” prisons. The Venezuelan state formation is conceptualized as ‘hybrid post-neoliberal,’ demonstrating how rationalities of a liberal rentier state and neoliberalism, combined with anti-neoliberal logics all act together in competing yet co-existing ways in the post-neoliberal era, which was initiated by the 1999 Bolivarian Revolution. The central question examines the “work” of the prison in the (re)production of power relations and how policies, …

Jakaltek Identity And The Fiesta Maya In Jupiter, Florida : Ethnic Belonging, Community, And Home, Maria M. Diaz Montejo

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

As immigration increasingly becomes a divisive issue in US politics and political measures are implemented to ensure safe borders, immigrants must find ways to avoid deportation. They must also find ways to support each other and maintain a sense of identity as their presence in the USA continues to be challenged and threatened. My research on Jakaltek migrants in Jupiter, Florida concentrates on Jakaltek migrant reconceptualization of home at the same time that they engage in identity politics that challenge a singular understanding of ethnic belonging. How Jakalteks react to their experiences in Jupiter as (mostly undocumented) migrants suggests that …

"Porque Tienen Mucho Derecho" : Parteras, Biomedical Training And The Vernacularization Of Human Rights In Chiapas, Mounia El Kotni

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This doctoral research stems from thirteen months of ethnographic fieldwork in the Mexican State of Chiapas. Chiapas is one of the regions with the highest maternal mortality rates in the country. To comply with international development goals to lower maternal mortality rates, indigenous midwives are trained in detecting risk factors in pregnancy and birth, while women are encouraged to give birth in hospitals. This dissertation sheds light on the impact of such policies on poor women's access to reproductive health care and Mayan midwives' practices. Over the course of my research, I utilized the methodology of participant-observation and conducted in-depth …

Prolegomena To Any Future Synthesis Of Hip-Hop And The Novel That Will Be Able To Present Itself As Dope And All-The-Way-Live, Austin Dylan Krauss

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This work will serve as a prologue to any future attempt at further articulating or writing a hypothetical HIP-HOP Novel.

Women Leaders As Change Agents: Mary Campbell’S Story Of Academic And Community Leadership, Raelynn Parmely '17

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

Through this ethnographic study, I had the pleasure of being introduced to Mary Campbell. Mary was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and grew up in a household made up of her mom, her father, and three older brothers. Unlike families that held their daughters and sons to different gendered standards, Mary always received encouragement from her family that she could do whatever her brothers did (see Figure 1). Mary attributes her Catholic upbringing with instilling many of the values that she maintains today, such as giving back to her community. During a service project in which she participated during …

What Does Motivated Mean? Re-Presenting Learning, Technology, And Motivation In Middle Schools Via New Ethnographic Writing, Justin Olmanson

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

This article offers a critique of the way middle schoolers are often positioned as generalizable objects that can be acted upon to produce measurable increases in motivation and learning. The critique invites a reconsideration and cultural analysis of some of the dominant discourses and perceptions of technology, young adolescence, and the study of motivation. The use of New Ethnographic Writing—a method that performs a cultural critique via extended scenes—connects to the roles and status of motivation, technology, and educational research methods deployed within public schools. Coupled with weak theory, this approach offers a way to understand young adolescents as navigating …

Project Meshnet And The Politics Of Scientific Practice, Garreth Blake Gardner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

I seek to demonstrate that innovative, socially circumscribed use of networking technology is changing the possibilities and practices of grassroots political movements, and conversely, that a politics of resistance aimed against real and perceived sociopolitical circumstances is shaping the use of technology. I examine the Project Meshnet community’s endeavor to create a decentralized alternative to the current, global Internet infrastructure as residing both in the context of decentralized but still institutionally-guided technology production and in the context of recent social movements characterized by de- centralized, non-hierarchical power structures, mutual aid, and other features. I conducted this research using the participant-observation …

Front Matter

BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers

No abstract provided.

Imitation Amber Beads Of Phenolic Resin From The African Trade, Rosanna Falabella

BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers

Examination of contemporary beads with African provenance reveals large quantities of imitation amber beads made of phenol-formaldehyde thermosetting resins (PFs). This article delves into the early industrial history of PFs and their use in the production of imitation amber and bead materials. Attempts to discover actual sources that manufactured imitation amber beads for export to Africa and the time frame have not been very fruitful. While evidence exists that PFs were widely used as amber substitutes within Europe, only a few post-WWII references explicitly report the export of imitation amber PF beads to Africa. However they arrived in Africa, the …

Beads: Journal Of The Society Of Bead Researchers - Volume 28 (Complete)

BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers

No abstract provided.

Beads And Pendants From The Tumuli Cemeteries At Wadi Qitna And Kalabsha-South, Nubia, Joanna Then-Obłuska

BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers

More than 500 beads and pendants were excavated by a Czechoslovakian team in the early 1960s at two sites in Lower Nubia. The beads were associated with 40 tumuli in the Wadi Qitna cemetery and two tumuli in the Kalabsha-South cemetery. These 4th-century cemeteries are related to the Blemmyes, the Eastern Desert dwellers whose pottery has been commonly recognized in the region between the Nile Valley and the Red Sea coast at a time of intensive overseas trade contacts. The bead assemblage, stored at the Naprstek Museum in Prague, was recently restudied and its materials and parallels could be more …

Bead Netting And Plaiting Techniques In The Peranakan World, Valerie Hector

BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers

It has long been recognized that the Peranakan Chinese peoples of Southeast Asia were expert bead embroiderers. As it happens, they were also expert bead netters and plaiters. After establishing a conceptual framework for discussing bead netting and plaiting techniques in general, this article discusses 14 pieces of Peranakan Chinese (or Minangkabau) beadwork and various techniques. The techniques likely derived not just from Europe, as early researchers tended to assume, but from island Southeast Asia and China as well. Knowledge of these and other needleworking techniques helped Peranakan beaders devise radically new permutations, some of them highly complex. Additional factors …