Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons^™

Overview & Acknowledgements, Mathew Schmalz

Journal of Global Catholicism

No abstract provided.

Sedimenting Territory: A Political Geology Of Oil, Earth, And Spatial Politics In Turkey, Zeynep Oguz

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Building on the recent turn to the material and earthly aspects of resources and political power in environmental anthropology and political geography, this work historically and ethnographically examines the kinds of territorial politics that oil’s materiality, geological qualities, and infrastructures have generated in Turkey. Despite being surrounded by oil-rich neighbors in the Middle East, Turkey’s domestic oil reserves supply only 7 percent of the country’s oil, all of which has been drilled in the Kurdish provinces of Batman, Diyarbakır, and Adıyaman in Turkey’s southeast, where the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party) has been fighting the Turkish state since 1984 for cultural …

Review Of Infected Kin: Orphan Care And Aids In Lesotho, Cassandra L. Workman

The Journal of Social Encounters

In the opening vignette, “A Story about Joala,” we readers are brought to the highlands of Lesotho to share homebrewed beer with brewers, research participants, and the authors. This experience of sharing a drink asks us to consider what it means to share in Lesotho, what the ties are that hold people together. Like the communal sharing of food, sharing joala is a defining social activity and as we learn throughout the ethnography, one that is important in the creation of kin. Indeed, this book is presented though a kinship-first perspective.

Using this framework and ground-up analytical methodology, Block and …

Review Of The Practice Of Islam In America: An Introduction, Aisha Ghani

The Journal of Social Encounters

The demand, indeed urgency, within the American Academy for courses on Islam has perhaps never been greater than at current. Yet, the very conditions that create this urgency also produce anxieties for those fulfilling this pedagogical role. The challenge confronting many of us - knowing that our students will enter the classroom with ideas/questions about Islam stemming, in large part, from what they’ve encountered through popular media and the news – is how to carry out this work in a way that both acknowledges this abiding, even if delimiting, contemporary context without allowing our teaching to be subsumed by it. …

Africa Faith And Justice Network And The Damages Of Land Grabbing: The Case Of The Brewaniase Community, Ghana, Sr. Eucharia Madueke

The Journal of Social Encounters

This essay discusses the procurement of farmland around the town of Brewaniase in the Volta Region of Ghana by the New York based agribusiness Herakles Farm (HF). The essay highlights some of the repercussions of land grabbing by foreign corporations that seek only profit and do not fulfill promises made to locals who lease their land for a better life. It provides information on the efforts of Africa Faith & Justice Network (AFJN), a faith-based Washington DC non-governmental organization, to enable the local communities to avert land grabs and its damages. The essay aims to help African communities and individuals …

Computed Tomography Shows High Fracture Prevalence Among Physically Active Forager-Horticulturalists With High Fertility, Jonathan Stieglitz, Benjamin C. Trumble, Horus Study Team, Caleb E. Finch, Dong Li, Matthew J. Budoff, Hillard Kaplan, Michael D. Gurven

ESI Publications

Modern humans have more fragile skeletons than other hominins, which may result from physical inactivity. Here, we test whether reproductive effort also compromises bone strength, by measuring using computed tomography thoracic vertebral bone mineral density (BMD) and fracture prevalence among physically active Tsimane forager-horticulturalists. Earlier onset of reproduction and shorter interbirth intervals are associated with reduced BMD for women. Tsimane BMD is lower versus Americans, but only for women, contrary to simple predictions relying on inactivity to explain skeletal fragility. Minimal BMD differences exist between Tsimane and American men, suggesting that systemic factors other than fertility (e.g. diet) do not …

The Dynamics Of Men's Cooperation And Social Status In A Small-Scale Society, Christopher Von Rueden, Daniel Redhead, Rick O'Gorman, Hillard Kaplan, Michael Gurven

ESI Publications

We propose that networks of cooperation and allocation of social status co-emerge in human groups. We substantiate this hypothesis with one of the first longitudinal studies of cooperation in a preindustrial society, spanning 8 years. Using longitudinal social network analysis of cooperation among men, we find large effects of kinship, reciprocity and transitivity in the nomination of cooperation partners over time. Independent of these effects, we show that (i) higher-status individuals gain more cooperation partners, and (ii) individuals gain status by cooperating with individuals of higher status than themselves. We posit that human hierarchies are more egalitarian relative to other …

Archive And Repertoire Of The Esala Perahera Performance In Sri Lanka, Hashintha Jayasinghe

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This project examines the archive and the repertoire of the Esala Perahera in Sri Lanka and charts the ideological and cultural implications of the performance. The archival analysis begins with the interrogation of the historical chronicles and the recorded history of the performance in the Sinhala and English texts. Thereafter, travel literature and the dissemination of cultural knowledge on the Perahera are discussed. The study of the repertoire and the photographic archive explores key performances in the Esala Perahera in 2016 and 2017. Postcolonial theory, theories on cultural anthropology, and performance theory are used to analyze the archive and the …

Dynamics Of Land Use, Environment, And Social Organization In The Sasanian Landscape Of Eastern Iraq—Western Iran, Mitra Panahipour

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Understanding human-environment interactions has been one of the main challenges in archaeological studies over recent years. Past research on the Near Eastern territorial empires in general, and the Sasanian Empire in particular, primarily emphasized the dominant role of human on landscape transformation. In addition, politically centralized schemes such as agricultural intensification and expansion of water supply systems have been at the center of most of the discussions and remained the main hypothesis of the Sasanian land use practices.

This dissertation investigates population’s diverse responses to environmental variability during the Sasanian period (224-651 CE) across a landscape in eastern Iraq—western Iran. …

“Medical Tourism Will…Obligate Physicians To Elevate Their Level So That They Can Compete”: A Qualitative Exploration Of The Anticipated Impacts Of Inbound Medical Tourism On Health Human Resources In Guatemala, Valorie A. Crooks, Ronald Labonté, Alejandro Cerón, Rory Johnston, Jeremy Snyder, Marcie Snyder

Anthropology: Faculty Scholarship

Background: Medical tourism, which involves cross-border travel to access private, non-emergency medical interventions, is growing in many Latin American Caribbean countries. The commodification and export of private health services is often promoted due to perceived economic benefits. Research indicates growing concern for health inequities caused by medical tourism, which includes its impact on health human resources, yet little research addresses the impacts of medical tourism on health human resources in destination countries and the subsequent impacts for health equity. To address this gap, we use a case study approach to identify anticipated impacts of medical tourism sector development on health …

Bound By Silence: Psychological Effects Of The Traditional Oath Ceremony Used In The Sex Trafficking Of Nigerian Women And Girls, Jennifer Millett-Barrett

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

Nigerian women and children have been trafficked to Italy over the last 30 years for commercial sexual exploitation with an alarming increase in the past three years. The Central Mediterranean Route that runs from West African countries to Italy is rife with organized crime gangs that have created a highly successful trafficking operation. As part of the recruitment process, the Nigerian mafia and its operatives exploit victims by subjecting them to a traditional religious juju oath ceremony, which is an extremely effective control mechanism to silence victims and trap them in debt bondage. This study explores the psychological effects of …

Dilemma And Knowledge - Book Review Of Re-Imagining Utopias: Theory And Method For Educational Research In Post-Socialist Contexts, Jessica Zychowicz

Comparative and International Education / Éducation Comparée et Internationale

No abstract provided.

Substituting Stories: Narrative Arcs And Pilgrimage Material Culture Between Lourdes And Csíksomlyó, Marc Roscoe Loustau

Journal of Global Catholicism

In this essay, I propose that substitution is one way subjects situate themselves in relation to European Catholics’ growing interest in multiple pilgrimages. I elaborate this claim through a case study of one Transylvanian Hungarian Catholic woman, Emilia, who substituted a story about a Transylvanian Hungarian shrine, Our Lady of Csíksomlyó, for a story about the Lourdes pilgrimage in France. I set also Emilia’s experience within a social context of memory production in the World Family of Radio Mária, a global Catholic media network that promotes devotional remembering. Emilia’s story about Our Lady of Csíksomlyó had revealed the strain of …

In Pursuit Of Healing And Memories: Cross-Border Ukrainian Pilgrimage To A Polish Shrine, Iuliia Buyskykh

Journal of Global Catholicism

I present an analysis of Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic and Orthodox pilgrimages to Kalwaria Pacławska in south-east Poland near the Polish-Ukrainian border. Before World War II, there were two pilgrimage sites in Kalwaria Pacławska, one Roman Catholic and the other Greek Catholic. Today, Ukrainian pilgrimage is quite a diverse phenomenon, consisting of people of both Ukrainian and Polish origin, and the three Christian denominations. The approach to pilgrimage as a palimpsest can broaden the research perspective of mobile religiosities and reconsider the interactions between religious motivations, sacred sites, memories, experiences, and storytelling through space and time. In my research case, …

Kumain Na Tayo! Exploring The Role Of Food In Communicating Tradition And Instilling Familial Values, Aaron Negrillo

Student Research

As a core part of Asian values, family plays a huge role in developing the individual’s identity. Family strongly contributes to the passing down of traditions and values. The expression of cultural values can be observed through many surface-level interactions such as food and meal rituals. This auto-ethnography explores the link between food and culture, specifically how it serves as a vehicle of communication that passes down traditions and values. The underlying core values of hospitality, respect, and sacrifice stand emerged from the thematic analysis conducted. Overall, food can be understood as a tangible expression of love: creating something for …

Seduction, Promises And Disneyfication Of Barbuda Post Irma, Sophia Perdikaris, Rebecca Boger, Emira Ibrahimpašić

School of Global Integrative Studies: Faculty Publications

Under the guise of post-hurricane development, the national government of Antigua and Barbuda exploited the disasterscape of post Hurricane Irma Barbuda to usher in a new wave of economic development that has left Barbudans separated from their unique culture and identity. In this article we explore what are inhabited vs. uninhabited spaces, the effects of Colonial Christian ideas on cultivated vs. uncultivated lands and the effects of capitalist seduction to traditional landscapes and seascapes. We argue that this neocolonial approach to traditional lifeways increases vulnerability of both people and environment. By wiping out diversity and culture in order to replace …

The Transformational Haze: Crisis, Shadow Economies, And Global Civil War On The Venezuela-Colombia Border, Sam Kirsch

Sustainability and Social Justice

This paper presents a counter-narrative to the current migration ‘crisis’ on the Venezuela-Colombia border. Its purpose is to highlight the geopolitical complexities of this event that are de-emphasized by media and neoliberal discourse. The frameworks of crisis narrative, shadow economies, and “global civil war” grants us the analytical lens that will allow us to peer further into the processes that have led to the Venezuelan migration. Through this lens, I will illuminate intricacies in the relationship between Colombia, Venezuela, and the West in a way that justifies the exploration of alternative interpretations to mainstream claims of socialism, tyranny, and intervention.

How Black Lives Matter Has Influenced And Interacted With Global Social Movements, Arelle A. Binning

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a chapter-based and member-led organization created out of grief by three queer black women. This thesis examines the international impact of BLM. I conducted telephone interviews with activists and advocacy organizations who have organized activist networks and/or won struggles against institutional racism outside of the United States. These activists are located in Kenya, South Africa, Brazil, Australia, India, Spain, The Netherlands, Sweden, and Paris. I conclude that BLM has inspired the creation and supported the continued development of organizations advocating for national and transnational social and racial justice on a global scale. BLM in spite …

Cultural Heritage Preservation In The Context Of Climate Change Adaptation Or Relocation: Barbuda As A Case Study, Martha B. Lerski

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This case study introduces an arts camp methodology of engaging communities in identifying their key cultural heritage features, thus serving as a meta study. It presents original research based on field studies on the climate-vulnerable Caribbean island of Barbuda during 2017 and 2018. Its Valued Cultural Elements survey, enabling precise identification of key tangible and intangible art forms and biocultural practices, may serve as a basis for further studies. Such approaches may facilitate future research or planning as climate-vulnerable communities harness Local or Indigenous Knowledge for purposes of biocultural heritage preservation, or towards adaptation or relocation. I report on findings …

Film Review: The Impure: An Abolitionist Documentary Film Of The 19th Century Traffic In Jewish Women, Caroline Norma

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

Disruptive Innovation: The Rise Of The Knowledge-Sharing Market In China, Yaqing Lan

International Studies Honors Projects

Innovation is a major subject of international political economy, but mainstream discussions focus on scientific research and development and detach innovation development from their social contexts. In response to this view, this project reveals the importance of cultural and social factors in influencing innovation development by examining the rise of the knowledge-sharing market (KSM) -- a social-network-site-based economy in China. It suggests the KSM is a disruptive innovation not only because it is pioneered by a latecomer in the global innovation market, China, but also because its emergence from the changing Chinese consumer demands disrupts the mainstream thinking of innovation.

Forjando Un Feminismo (No) Transgeneracional: Una Examinación De La Memoria Y La Construcción De Identidades En El Movimiento Estudiantil Feminista Del 2018-19, Isabel Guarnieri

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The student feminist movement of 2018-19 was dubbed Chile’s “third wave” of feminism. Media outlets framed it not only as a push to address violence against women and establish a non-sexist education system, but as a revolt against the neoliberal system that generates gender-based inequality – a legacy of the military dictatorship. This paper sought to investigate the processes by which the activists of the 2018-19 student feminist movement constructed a transgenerational movement through the mobilization of memory, as well as to interrogate the intergenerational perspectives surrounding the effectiveness of this mobilization, recognizing feminism’s continuities and the importance of remembering …

Internamente Solo: Escuchando Y Resistiendo La Soledad De Adultos Mayores En La Araucanía, Chile / Internally Alone: Hearing And Resisting The Loneliness Of Seniors In La Araucanía, Chile, Grace Ellrodt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Research Question: Which current patterns drive or diminish loneliness among seniors of the Region of the Araucanía in the city of Temuco and surrounding rural communes?

Objectives: Understand and interpret the roots and the antidotes of the loneliness phenomenon experienced by seniors in Temuco and surrounding communes in the present moment.

Identify and analyze the drivers of pathological elder loneliness in structural, intermediary, and proximal factors.

Highlight the perspectives and narratives of seniors, community leaders, and health resources with respect to strategies to reduce the crisis.

Background: Currently, the population of seniors has risen and will continue to rise in …

Primates Of The Padangtegal Monkey Forest: Aggressive, Submissive And Affiliative: Interactions Between The Balinese Long-Tailed Macaques And Tourists, Marleigh Jenkins-Morse

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Bali is one of Indonesia’s seventeen thousand islands and it has become a major tourist destination for visitors from all over the world. One of the most sought after attractions are the various monkey forests on the island, and one of the most renowned is the Padangtegal Monkey Forest in Ubud. As someone who studies Biological Anthropology, I am fascinated by primates both human and non-human. Within the Ubud Monkey Forest these two species come into contact on a daily basis.

Ethnoprimatology is a growing study, and it refers to the “interconnections between human and nonhuman primates” (McCarthy et al. …

Local Democracy And Education Policy In Newly Federal Nepal, Jack Shangraw

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In 2017, Nepal held its first local elections in twenty years. These were the first elections held under Nepal’s new constitution, ratified in 2015, which transitioned the country from a unitary state to a Federal Democratic Republic. This case study analyzes the effect of the transition to federalism on decision-making and community representation in local governance in Annapurna Rural Municipality in West-Central Nepal. This study focuses specifically on education policy, one of the more public and contentious policy responsibilities devolved from the federal level to the local units under the new constitution. This research is based on interviews with government …

Reintegration Of Women Perpetrators In Post-Genocide Rwanda, Terrie Soule

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Women tend to be victims during times of violence. Due to this the breadth of research on women who perpetrate violence is limited. Due to stereotypes women are more often than not seen as peace makers and nurturers, which ignores the fact that women have just as much capability as men to inflict violence. During the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, average citizens, including women, became perpetrators of genocide. As this genocide only occurred in 1994 research on the reintegration of perpetrators is limited. This paper asks the question how are women perpetrators of Genocide being reintegrated into society? …

Empowering Women Through Land: An Analysis Of The Barriers In Accessing Land Rights Within Kisumu County, Kenya, Madison Shaffer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This project aims to gain a greater understanding of the current state of women’s land rights in Kisumu County, Kenya. It will discuss current barriers women face in accessing land and how land can impact a woman’s empowerment and in turn, her control over her health. Property rights can provide women with a secure place to live, a place of economic activity and reduce dependence on men. Property ownership can also serve to empower women and “give them greater bargaining power at the household, individual, and community level...increasing agency” (Dworkin,2009). Unfortunately, men have almost always been favored in land rights …

Humanitarian Assistance In Protracted Emergencies: Rethinking The Role Of Food Aid In Adjumani, Victoria Puglia

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Humanitarian food assistance is incredibly susceptible to funding cuts, which reduces the quantity of food available to refugees. If refugees depend solely on food aid for survival, the implication of reductions is increased food insecurity at a household level. The Government of Uganda champions a self-reliance strategy that has failed to support refugees to the desired extent, especially when food rations are low. This study aims to assess the impact of humanitarian food assistance on the socioeconomic structures of refugee settlements in Adjumani, Uganda to understand the consequences of unstable food aid. The research was conducted over a four-week period. …

“Todos Somos Trigueños”: La Presencia De Los Pueblos Indígenas En El Arte Urbano De Perú, Aubrey Parke

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Con una base en teorías de las ciencias sociales, incluso sociología, antropología y estudios urbanos, este proyecto investiga la representación de los pueblos indígenas en el arte urbano de Perú. Mi objetivo es entender como artistas urbanos en Lima conceptualizan a los pueblos indígenas a través de sus murales. Hice entrevistas con siete artistas urbanos en Lima durante un periodo de dos semanas, y también discutí con ellos ejemplos de su trabajo. Analizo las entrevistas y los murales dentro del contexto de la globalización, la historia del indigenismo en el arte peruano y las historias personales de cada artista. Encontré …

When Crayons Meet Tibetan Living Room Walls: Early Childhood In Exile, Emma Hart

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study aims to understand early childhood caregiving among Tibetan refugees living in Nepal. Due to the brain’s enormous developmental plasticity from ages zero to three, children’s experiences during this period are extremely important to explaining their future learnings in school, interactions with people, and engagements with their surroundings. Through interviews and observations, Tibetan parents shared their conceptions of early childhood, parent-child interaction norms, dreams for their children, and how their status as refugees in Nepal affects these. Research was conducted in two Pokhara district Tibetan settlements and one settlement in Mustang. Connected by the flow of children and adults …