Development Anthropology Cultural Change Development Anthropology How cultures

Development Anthropology Cultural Change

Development Anthropology How cultures change How anthropologists can inform and transform the process of international development

International Development A process of directed change that focuses on improving the welfare of people in so-called underdeveloped countries Often through promoting economic growth

Mechanisms of Cultural Change

Mechanisms of Change Invention Diffusion Including “stimulus diffusion” Migration Devolution (cultural loss)

Mechanisms of Change Invention The creation of something new “primary” • discovery of new principles “secondary” • application of principles Often associated with rapid change

Inventions Not all inventions have positive social outcomes Cultural anthropologists have made significant contributions to improving development by telling stories of the “victims” of change

Mechanisms of Change Diffusion The spread of something from one group to the next Borrowing Often associated with slow change Including stimulus diffusion. . .

Mechanisms of Change Stimulus Diffusion The spread of an idea from one group to the next

Diffusion Can occur between unequal societies through force through education or marketing

Diffusion A culture can become so completely acculturated that it becomes assimilated

Mechanisms of Change Migration The movement of a person or people from one place to another

Mechanisms of Change Devolution (cultural loss) Loss without replacement of a cultural trait Can be slow or rapid

“Modernization” A model of change based on the belief in the inevitable advance of science and Western secularism and processes • including industrial growth, consolidation of the state, bureaucratization, market economy, technological innovation, literacy, and options for social mobility

“Modernization” = “Globalization”?

Cultural Change Main Causes of Change Environment Individual variation (innovation) Contact with other groups • Diffusion s Including Stimulus diffusion • Acculturation. . .

Acculturation Change that takes place as a result of firsthand continuous contact between two or more groups

Acculturation Is usually rapid change, but it varies. . .

Acculturation It varies with Degree of cultural difference Circumstances of contact Intensity of contact. . .

Acculturation It varies with Frequency of contact Amiability of contact. . .

Acculturation It varies with Relative status of agents of contact Who is dominant and who is submissive. . .

Acculturation It varies with Whether the nature of flow is reciprocal or nonreciprocal

All cultures change Change can be intentional or accidental forward or backward looking rapid or gradual obvious or nearly invisible

Acculturation Processes

Acculturation Processes during acculturation include: Substitution • Replacing one cultural item with another • Minimal structural change • E. g. , Dani substitution of competitive games and events for warfare

Acculturation Processes during acculturation include: Syncretism • A blending of cultural elements • Considerable cultural change • E. g. , Mayan “Folk Catholicism” • E. g. , Trobriand Cricket

Acculturation Processes during acculturation include: Addition • Cultural items are added • Structural change may or may not occur • E. g. , Yanomamö bananas

Acculturation Processes during acculturation include: Deculturation (devolution) • The loss of part of a culture • E. g. , headhunting among the Asmat of New Guinea

Acculturation Processes during acculturation include: Origination • Development of new traits to meet the needs of a changing situation • E. g. , Amish self-isolation

Acculturation Processes during acculturation include: Rejection • Changes may be so rapid that a large number of persons cannot accept them, resulting in total rejection, rebellion, or revitalization movements • E. g. , The Ghost Dance Movement

Results of Acculturation

Acculturation Results of Acculturation: Assimilation (merger) • One culture becomes completely merged into another and no longer has a separate identity • often occurs with a loss of language

Acculturation Results of Acculturation: Incorporation • One culture loses autonomy but retains its identity as a subculture • Typical of conquest or slavery situations • E. g. , Cast in India • E. g. , American Irish, Cajun, Gullah

Acculturation Results of Acculturation: Extinction • One culture loses its individual members until it can no longer function, and members die out or join other cultures • The Shakers may become an example of extinction

Acculturation Results of Acculturation: Adaptation • A new structure may develop in “dynamic equilibrium” • Cultures make adjustments to enhance their survival • E. g. , Amish self-isolation

Misc. Notes

Cultural Change Early cultural anthropologists took a “synchronic” or “one-time” view in describing a culture with no attention to its past More focus on “diachronic” or “acrosstime” analysis since the 1970 s

Cultural Change Now studies are diachronic the analysis of cultures “across time” (Synchronic = A “one-time” view of culture with minimal or no attention paid to its past)

Cultural Change Rates of change vary Change is inevitable

Cultural Change Traditional Development Anthropology an approach to development in which the anthropologist accepts the role of helping to make development work better by providing cultural information to planners an option that economists and others realize can help make their plans more effective “What can I do to make this project successful? ”

Cultural Change Critical Development Anthropology an approach to international development in which the anthropologist takes on a criticalthinking role and asks why and to whose benefit particular development policies and programs are pursued developed out of the awareness of the socially negative impact of many supposedly positive development projects “Is this a good project from the perspective of the target population? ”

Cultural Change Human Development a model of change promoted by the United Nations that emphasizes improvements in human welfare such as health, education, and personal security improvements in human welfare will lead to overall development of the nation

Cultural Change Sustainable Development a directed change that involves forms of development that are not environmentally destructive and are financially supportable by the host country or environmentally by the earth as a whole

Cultural Change Sociocultural fit concept that refers to how well a development project meshes with the “target” culture and population

Cultural Change Indigenous People people who consider themselves the original inhabitants of the territories they occupy “First Peoples” most often have lost or are losing their claim to ancestral lands

Cultural Change Indigenous People the United Nations distinguishes between • indigenous people s original inhabitants of the territories they occupy • and minority groups s E. g. , Rom (Gypsies)

Indigenous People’s Development Indigenous people have been subjected to loss of rights, land culture they once had Through indigenous claims and pressure, some states have begun to resolve land issues

Indigenous People’s Development Many indigenous people have formed their own organizations to promote “development from within”

Human Rights Cultural anthropologists contribute insight from different cultures about perceptions of basic human rights and may be able to prevent human rights abuses in the future

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People live in Multiple Cultural Worlds

Multiple Cultural Worlds n class n race n ethnicity n sex/gender n age n institutions

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