Alfred Métraux: Between Ethnography and Applied Knowledge

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Bulamah
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Social Life ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Colonial Expansion ◽  
Religious Systems ◽  
Applied Knowledge ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
Different Parts

Alfred Métraux was part of a prolific moment in which French sociology and ethnology were enlarging their scientific scope and advancing toward new fields. Following the colonial expansion of France, Métraux participated in establishing ethnographic methods for codifying social life, material culture, and artistic forms. Through his own transatlantic voyages and personal exchanges, Métraux left personal documents in different parts of the world. Consequently, many are the archives that hold parts of his personal collections, letters, and published or unpublished materials. In addition, because of Métraux’s own cosmopolitanism, studies on the ethnologist’s life and works can be found in different languages. Métraux meticulously collected artifacts and documents from different cultures, and these items are now part of collections in museums in Argentina, France, and the United States. The multiplicity of themes Métraux dedicated himself to during his life reveal logics and developments of his work, as well as the importance of fieldwork to his making as an anthropologist, or a “man of the field,” as he used to describe himself. His intense and long-term relationship with Haitian Vodou was central in his career as it arose from his early interest in vanishing civilizations, religious systems, and material culture, and defined his personal agenda for future research.

Cross Cultural Perceptions on Privacy in the United States, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Taiwan

2009 ◽  
pp. 284-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andy Chiou
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Single System ◽  
Cultural Perceptions ◽  
Internet Privacy ◽  
Different Cultures

In this chapter, the authors will briefly discuss some cross cultural concerns regarding Internet privacy. The authors believe that due to the cross cultural nature of the Internet itself, different cultures will tend to result in different concerns regarding Internet privacy. As such, there is no single system of protecting Internet privacy that may be suitable for all cultures. The authors also utilize focus groups from various countries spanning Asia and the United States to discover the differences between cultures. Hopefully an understanding of such differences will aid in future research on Internet privacy to take a more culture sensitive approach.

scholarly journals CHILD ABUSE AND ADULT MENTAL HEALTH: DOES GENDER MATTER?

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S935-S935
Author(s):  
Patricia M Morton ◽  
Blakelee Kemp ◽  
Frass Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Child Abuse ◽  
Emotional Abuse ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Depression And Anxiety ◽  
Adult Mental Health ◽  
Maternal Abuse ◽  
Parental Abuse

Abstract Numerous studies have demonstrated that child abuse is associated with poor adult mental health, but few have investigated the extent to which the frequency of different types of abuse increase mental health conditions, especially at the nexus of gender. The present study examines whether parental abuse frequency and abuse perpetrator have distinct effects for men and women on three mental health outcomes—depressive symptoms, generalized anxiety, and global self-reported mental health. Data came from three waves of the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS), comprising a baseline sample of 3,032 adults aged 25-74. Estimating a series of mixed effects models revealed that maternal abuse and frequent abuse during childhood were associated with poorer adult mental health during our 20-year observation period, net of childhood and adult risk factors. Specifically, maternal emotional abuse raised the risk of depression, anxiety, and lower self-rated mental health, and was more strongly associated with depression and anxiety for women than men. Compared to adults who did not experience parental abuse during childhood, adults who experienced frequent emotional and physical abuse by either parent were more likely to experience depression and anxiety and report lower ratings of mental health in adulthood. Frequent child abuse was more strongly associated with anxiety for women than men. These results demonstrate that gender differences in adult mental health have early-life antecedents. Future research investigating the long-term mental health consequences of child abuse should consider the type and magnitude of abuse as well as the perpetrator.

Museum Anthropology

Anthropology ◽  
2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alaka Wali ◽  
Rosa Cabrera ◽  
Jennifer Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Human Ecology ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Academic Discipline ◽  
Field Research ◽  
British Museum ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Cultural Patrimony ◽  
Museum Displays

The field of museum anthropology predates the institutionalization of anthropology as an academic discipline in universities. The formation of collections from as early as the 17th century spurred the study of the cultures that produced the objects destined for display. Early on, anthropology collections were integrated either into national museums (e.g., the British Museum), museums of “folk culture,” or, especially in the United States, natural history museums. The first major anthropology and archaeology museum was the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, founded in 1866. Eventually, the collections became the foundation for research and documentation of the lifeways, material circumstances, and human ecology of diverse cultures. For more than a century, anthropologists situated in museums curated the collections by documenting them through catalogues and publications and by creating public displays. However, after the 1970s, museum anthropology became more research oriented, moving beyond collections-based documentation to an emphasis on field research. Simultaneously, it became more difficult to acquire objects because of diminishing resources and international and national policies on cultural patrimony. In the 1980s, a growing critique of the representation of cultures began to emerge from outside the museum walls. The critiques concerned the ahistorical, evolutionary-oriented display of non-European cultures, and the lack of inclusion of “first voice” (the perspective of the peoples themselves). The authority of the curator was questioned, as were the colonialist perspectives that museum displays embodied. Critiques came from academically situated scholars as well as from the communities whose cultures were represented in museum displays. The response from within the museum has been transformative. Curators developed new forms of representation, more attuned to contemporary theory, and they began to collaborate with communities to include their perspectives. Studies of material culture and human ecology continue to dominate museum anthropology, but they are very diverse and cover a huge geographical terrain. Interest has also revived in material-culture studies outside of museums, and we have included some sampling of this work here. Museum-based education programs and publications oriented toward the general public cover the classic four fields of anthropology. Museums of specific cultural groups or heritage-based museums may not always include anthropologists on staff; however, their work represents an important contribution to the understanding of the role of culture and ethnicity in social life. “Eco-museums,” museums dedicated to a single place or a single cultural heritage, represent an important trend of this kind.

scholarly journals Loneliness and Changes in Cognitive Functioning Among Racially Diverse Older Adults in the United States

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 588-589
Author(s):  
Kelly Pacheco ◽  
Charles Henderson ◽  
M Cary Reid ◽  
Elaine Wethington ◽  
David Camacho
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cognitive Decline ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Minority Stress ◽  
Social Connectedness ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cognitive Domain ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Racially Diverse

Abstract Longitudinal studies examining the association of loneliness with cognitive decline rarely include older members of racial minorities. Guided by a Minority Stress Framework, we used Waves 2 and 3 from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project to assess whether loneliness (UCLA-3-items) at W2 predicts cognitive decline (Chicago Cognitive Functioning Measure) among US African-American, Latino, and white older adults (ages≥60). We included interactions of W2 loneliness with race in examining changes in cognitive functioning. Estimates were (N=1,950) adjusted for demographics, chronic disease, depression, and social connectedness. In all groups, loneliness was positively associated with greater global cognitive decline over the 5-year interval. However, analyses of different domains of cognitive functioning (e.g., executive functioning, memory) suggested that this association differs by cognitive domain and race. Future research on interventions to prevent cognitive decline should consider targeting loneliness, include diverse older adults, and examine global and specific domains of cognitive functioning.

Untangling the Racialization of Disabilities

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 329-347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfredo J. Artiles
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Educational Trajectories ◽  
Individual Structure ◽  
Historical Processes ◽  
Disability Categories ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Sizable Number

AbstractThis article advances an intersectional perspective in the analysis of racial inequities in special education so that theoretical refinement of this problem will strengthen educational equity research and theory. Racial disproportionality in some disability categories continues to affect a sizable number of students in the United States, with dire long-term consequences for the educational trajectories of these learners. After more than four decades, the problem continues to be debated in research, practice, and policy circles. There is consensus among researchers that the racialization of disability embodies complexities that defy linear explanations. But this debate has overlooked the potential of intersectionality to document complexity and to transcend the individual-structure binary that tends to permeate previous scholarship. Indeed, intersectionality's explicit attention to how the complexity of people's everyday experiences is connected to larger historical processes could offer key insights. I analyze how disproportionality research has addressed the intersections of race and disability (along with other markers of oppression) through a contrapuntal reading of works framed with medical, social, and cultural disability models. I conclude with reflections for future research on racial disparities in special education that is mindful of intersectional complexity.

scholarly journals Air pollution and COVID-19 mortality in the United States: Strengths and limitations of an ecological regression analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (45) ◽  
pp. eabd4049 ◽  
Author(s):  
X. Wu ◽  
R. C. Nethery ◽  
M. B. Sabath ◽  
D. Braun ◽  
F. Dominici
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Regression Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Outcome Data ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Ecological Regression

Assessing whether long-term exposure to air pollution increases the severity of COVID-19 health outcomes, including death, is an important public health objective. Limitations in COVID-19 data availability and quality remain obstacles to conducting conclusive studies on this topic. At present, publicly available COVID-19 outcome data for representative populations are available only as area-level counts. Therefore, studies of long-term exposure to air pollution and COVID-19 outcomes using these data must use an ecological regression analysis, which precludes controlling for individual-level COVID-19 risk factors. We describe these challenges in the context of one of the first preliminary investigations of this question in the United States, where we found that higher historical PM2.5 exposures are positively associated with higher county-level COVID-19 mortality rates after accounting for many area-level confounders. Motivated by this study, we lay the groundwork for future research on this important topic, describe the challenges, and outline promising directions and opportunities.

scholarly journals CHILD ABUSE AND ADULT MENTAL HEALTH: DOES GENDER MATTER?

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S934-S934
Author(s):  
Patricia M Morton ◽  
Blakelee Kemp ◽  
Frass Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Child Abuse ◽  
Emotional Abuse ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Depression And Anxiety ◽  
Adult Mental Health ◽  
Maternal Abuse ◽  
Parental Abuse

Abstract Numerous studies have demonstrated that child abuse is associated with poor adult mental health, but few have investigated the extent to which the frequency of different types of abuse increase mental health conditions, especially at the nexus of gender. The present study examines whether parental abuse frequency and abuse perpetrator have distinct effects for men and women on three mental health outcomes—depressive symptoms, generalized anxiety, and global self-reported mental health. Data came from three waves of the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS), comprising a baseline sample of 3,032 adults aged 25-74. Estimating a series of mixed effects models revealed that maternal abuse and frequent abuse during childhood were associated with poorer adult mental health during our 20-year observation period, net of childhood and adult risk factors. Specifically, maternal emotional abuse raised the risk of depression, anxiety, and lower self-rated mental health, and was more strongly associated with depression and anxiety for women than men. Compared to adults who did not experience parental abuse during childhood, adults who experienced frequent emotional and physical abuse by either parent were more likely to experience depression and anxiety and report lower ratings of mental health in adulthood. Frequent child abuse was more strongly associated with anxiety for women than men. These results demonstrate that gender differences in adult mental health have early-life antecedents. Future research investigating the long-term mental health consequences of child abuse should consider the type and magnitude of abuse as well as the perpetrator.

Attributes of long-term heavy cannabis users: a case–control study

2003 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 1415-1422 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. J. GRUBER ◽  
H. G. POPE ◽  
J. I. HUDSON ◽  
D. YURGELUN-TODD
Keyword(s):  
Social Life ◽  
Subjective Effects ◽  
The United States ◽  
Case Control ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Heavy Users ◽  
Confounding Variables ◽  
Negative Effect

Background. Although cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in the United States, few recent American studies have examined the attributes of long-term heavy cannabis users.Method. Using a case–control design, we obtained psychological and demographic measures on 108 individuals, age 30–55, who had smoked cannabis a mean of 18000 times and a minimum of 5000 times in their lives. We compared these heavy users to 72 age-matched control subjects who had smoked at least once, but no more than 50 times in their lives.Results. We found no significant differences between the two groups on reported levels of income and education in their families of origin. However, the heavy users themselves reported significantly lower educational attainment (P<0·001) and income (P=0·003) than the controls, even after adjustment for a large number of potentially confounding variables. When asked to rate the subjective effects of cannabis on their cognition, memory, career, social life, physical health and mental health, large majorities of heavy users (66–90%) reported a ‘negative effect’. On several measures of quality of life, heavy users also reported significantly lower levels of satisfaction than controls.Conclusion. Both objective and self-report measures suggest numerous negative features associated with long-term heavy cannabis use. Thus, it seems important to understand why heavy users continue to smoke regularly for years, despite acknowledging these negative effects. Such an understanding may guide the development of strategies to treat cannabis dependence.

scholarly journals Big brains, small worlds: material culture and the evolution of the mind

2008 ◽  
Vol 363 (1499) ◽  
pp. 1969-1979 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fiona Coward ◽  
Clive Gamble
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Cultural Transmission ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Cognitive Mechanisms ◽  
New Developments ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Hominin Evolution ◽  
Extant Primate ◽  
The Mind

New developments in neuroimaging have demonstrated that the basic capacities underpinning human social skills are shared by our closest extant primate relatives. The challenge for archaeologists is to explain how complex human societies evolved from this shared pattern of face-to-face social interaction. We argue that a key process was the gradual incorporation of material culture into social networks over the course of hominin evolution. Here we use three long-term processes in hominin evolution—encephalization, the global human diaspora and sedentism/agriculture—to illustrate how the cultural transmission of material culture allowed the ‘scaling up’ of face-to-face social interactions to the global societies known today. We conclude that future research by neuroimagers and archaeologists will need to investigate the cognitive mechanisms behind human engagement with material culture as well as other persons.

Pay-for-Performance and Long-Term Care

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Li ◽  
Edward C. Norton
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Acute Care ◽  
Long Term Care ◽  
Pay For Performance ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Term Care

Pay-for-performance programs have become a prominent supply-side intervention to improve quality and decrease spending in health care, touching upon long-term care, acute care, and outpatient care. Pay-for-performance directly targets long-term care, with programs in nursing homes and home health. Indirectly, pay-for-performance programs targeting acute care settings affect clinical practice for long-term care providers through incentives for collaboration across settings. As a whole, pay-for-performance programs entail the identification of problems it seeks to solve, measurement of the dimensions it seeks to incentivize, methods to combine and translate performance to incentives, and application of the incentives to reward performance. For the long-term care population, pay-for-performance programs must also heed the unique challenges specific to the sector, such as patients with complex health needs and distinct health trajectories, and be structured to recognize the challenges of incentivizing performance improvement when there are multiple providers and payers involved in the care delivery. Although empirical results indicate modest effectiveness of pay-for-performance in long-term care on improving targeted measures, some research has provided more clarity on the role of pay-for-performance design on the output of the programs, highlighting room for future research. Further, because health care is interconnected, the indirect effects of pay-for-performance programs on long-term care is an underexplored topic. As the scope of pay-for-performance in long-term care expands, both within the United States and internationally, pay-for-performance offers ample opportunities for future research.

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