Anthropology, History and Personal Narratives: Reflections on Writing ‘African Voices, African Lives’

1999 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 283-290 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pat Caplan
Keyword(s):  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Social Anthropology ◽  
Founding Father ◽  
The Relationship

Almost half a century ago, the famous British anthropologist Evans-Pritchard suggested that anthropology is actually a form of historiography, thus initiating a debate about the relationship between the two disciplines which has continued sporadically ever since. His statement was a reaction to the claims of Radcliffe-Brown, a founding ‘father’ of British social anthropology, that social anthropology was a kind of science, whereas Evans-Pritchard sought to claim it for the humanities.

scholarly journals Host-Guest Relationships in Non-Commercial Tourism Settings: WWOOFing in New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Dagmar Cronauer
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Interpersonal Relationships ◽  
Social Exchange ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Two Dimensions ◽  
Multiple Roles ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Organic Farms ◽  
Interpersonal Connectedness ◽  
The Relationship

<p>This study investigates host-­guest elationships in a non‐commercial tourism setting within the context of WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) in New Zealand. WWOOF is a worldwide membership network of organic farms, and is comprised of non‐monetary exchange relationships between WWOOF hosts and guests (WWOOFers). It involves tourists offering their help with activities on these farms in exchange for accommodation and food. The purpose of this research is to examine WWOOF hosts and guests’ meanings and understandings of the host‐guest relationship and the dynamics that influence the nature of the WWOOF encounter. An examination of hosts and guests’ expectations and their subsequent effect on the encounter, and of personal outcomes, assist in making sense of the multiple roles of both parties. The study contributes to the limited research that explores non‐commercial host‐guest relationships in tourism. Through consulting literature on the commercial home, it builds on previous work on WWOOFing by focusing on hosts and guests’ perceptions rather than only one perspective. It gives voice to an under‐acknowledged group of hosts and tourists, who are not counted as contributors to economic development of tourism in New Zealand. The research  was developed within a social constructivist paradigm. Using phenomenological methodology, in‐depth interviews with hosts and guests in New Zealand allowed for a thorough analysis of their personal narratives of the WWOOF experience, and the host‐guest relationships. Twenty‐eight interviews were conducted during June and July 2011  (some with two interviewees): resulting in data from 24 hosts and 15 WWOOFers. The findings suggest that WWOOF hosts and guests interact within work and social dimensions. The work dimension dictates that the guest offer help with work on the organic property in return for accommodation and  food provided by the host. The social dimension demands interpersonal exchange and social bonds are developed. A model is presented, which demonstrates that host‐guest relationships in WWOOFing evolve and are constantly being negotiated and evaluated. Hosts and guests have multiple roles within the two dimensions: employer‐employee, host‐guest, (family) host‐family member, and friends. These roles are dependent on the level of formalisation of the encounter and the level of interpersonal connectedness. The encounter involves the host’s obligation to meet the needs of the guest and the guest’s obligation to adhere to implicit and explicit rules and guidelines determined by the host. Space and time are mostly shared within the host’s home or hosting space. The study shows that the relationships that occur are complex and multi‐faceted. The various dimensions, which are essential in creating closer, interpersonal relationships, are negotiated within various levels of the relationship. The aspects that influence the roles adopted in work and social spheres and the evolution of the relationship require an understanding of the temporal roles of hosts and guests, trust, shared values and stories, as well as work and social exchange elements.</p>

scholarly journals The Distribution and Consequences of Sexual Misconduct Perpetrated by Peacekeepers in Haiti: An Exploratory Cross-Sectional Analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luissa Vahedi ◽  
Heather Stuart ◽  
Stéphanie Etienne ◽  
Sabine Lee ◽  
Susan A Bartels
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Sexual Misconduct ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Personal Experiences ◽  
Sectional Analysis ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Research Assistants

Abstract During the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), reports of sexual abuse and exploitation and children fathered by peacekeepers were brought forward to the UN. In 2017, a cross-sectional mixed-methods survey was administered by Haitian research assistants using SenseMaker®, a rapid data collection tool that allows participants to share a narrative on a topic of interest. In total, 2541 self-interpreted narratives in relation to the experiences of Haitian women and girls vis-à-vis peacekeepers were collected from a convenience sample of Haitian males and females across Haiti. This exploratory secondary data analysis analyzes whether narratives about sexual misconduct perpetrated by MINUSTAH peacekeepers were associated with rural, semi-urban, or urban locations and investigates the relationship between sharing narratives about sexual misconduct and the desire to engage with the UN/MINUSTAH. After adjustment, narratives addressing sexual misconduct were more likely to be shared in rural locations, compared to urban locations (RRrural: 1.19; 95% CI: 1.03, 1.38). Personal experiences of sexual misconduct were more likely (RRsex: 4.52; 95% CI: 3.34, 6.12) to be associated with rejection of the UN/MINUSTAH, compared to personal narratives of positive/neutral experiences. This research is an empirical steppingstone to understanding the distribution and consequences of peacekeeper-perpetrated sexual abuse and exploitation in Haiti.

Consumers and their celebrity brands: how personal narratives set the stage for attachment

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 831-847
Author(s):  
Bennie Eng ◽  
Cheryl Burke Jarvis
Keyword(s):  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Moderating Effects ◽  
Brand Relationships ◽  
Brand Attachment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Relationship Norms ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to demonstrate how consumer attachment to celebrity brands is driven by perceived narratives about the celebrity’s persona, which triggers communal (i.e. altruistic) relationship norms. The research investigates the differential role of narratives about celebrities’ personal vs professional lives in creating attachment and identifies and tests moderating effects of narrative characteristics including perceived source of fame, valence and authenticity. Design/methodology/approach Three online experiments tested the proposed direct, meditating and moderating relationships. Data was analyzed using mediation analysis and multiple ANOVAs. Findings The results suggest relationship norms that are more altruistic in nature fully mediate the relationship between narrative type and brand attachment. Additionally, personal narratives produce stronger attachment than professional narratives; the celebrity’s source of fame moderates narrative type and attachment; and on-brand narratives elicit higher attachment than off-brand narratives, even when these narratives are negative. Practical implications The authors offer recommendations for how marketers can shape celebrity brand narratives to build stronger consumer attachment. Notably, personal (vs professional) narratives are critical in building attachment, especially for celebrity brands that are perceived to have achieved their fame. Both positive and negative personal narratives can strengthen attachment for achieved celebrity brands, but only if they are on-brand with consumer expectations. Originality/value This research is an introductory examination of the fundamental theoretical process by which celebrity brand relationships develop from brand persona narratives and how characteristics of those narratives influence consumer-brand attachment.

Identity narrative, group and individual narratives and their role in social stability: A multidisciplinary approach

2021 ◽  
pp. 053331642110125
Author(s):  
Andrei Novac ◽  
Christine Zahn ◽  
Barton J. Blinder
Keyword(s):  
Multidisciplinary Approach ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Group Analysis ◽  
Social Stability ◽  
Memory Research ◽  
The Past ◽  
Psychology History ◽  
Historical Times ◽  
Societal Level ◽  
The Relationship

Major social political changes over the past decades have stimulated an interest in both individual (i.e., personal) and group narratives as they relate to the decision-making process. In previous contributions, we have proposed the term Identity Narrative (IdN) to define a cognitive and emotional framework that serves as an implicit (unconscious) scaffold of human autobiography. IdN is a form of implicit memory, the acquisition of which begins with the first human nonverbal interactions. It serves as a framework for a person’s identity and creates relative stability and constancy for conscious, explicit, autobiographical memory. In this contribution we are presenting a multi-system exploration of the relationship between personal narratives as influenced by IdN and group narratives and their impact on social stability. We are presenting multi-disciplinary data from a variety of fields, including group psychoanalysis, memory research, the neuroscience of error prediction and free energy, and social science. We propose that in order to maintain social stability, the ratio between the entropy of personal narratives and group narratives in society also remains relatively stable. Based on the literature on group analysis, we are proposing a further investigation of the interchange between group narratives (group psychology, history, the humanities, culture in a society) and individual narratives (autobiography and IdN), and their impact at a societal level. By doing so, we are reiterating that the study of group analysis is of special socio-political significance in these historical times.

scholarly journals EATING (WITH) PIRANHAS: UNTAMED APPROACHES TO DOMESTICATION

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 38-57
Author(s):  
Carlos Emanuel Sautchuk ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Social Anthropology ◽  
Nature And Culture ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Subject And Object ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract In this article I begin by describing my sense of ethnographic unease concerning the commensality and the conviviality of two predators in Amazonian lakes - piranhas and fishermen. From this starting point I then discuss the notion of domestication, commenting on the current tendency to reaffirm use of the term in social anthropology and revisiting two approaches: that of Jean-Pierre Digard (and other French authors) and that of Tim Ingold, both of whom make use of this notion in their ethnographic explorations of the relation between humans and animals. The article then returns to explore the potential of the notion of domestication for making explicit contemporary questions and dilemmas such as nature and culture, human and animal, subject and object. I conclude with a reflection on the ideas of domestication and predation in the relationship between piranhas and fishermen.

scholarly journals RECONCEPTUALISING THE ROLE OF NARRATIVE IN EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA: LESSONS FROM THE FIELD

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-30
Author(s):  
David Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Life Histories ◽  
Narrative Research ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Field Work ◽  
African Continent ◽  
The West ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Education And Development ◽  
The Relationship

There has been a major ‘turn’ towards narrative, biographical and life history approaches in the academy over the last 30 years. But whereas some significant narrative research has been carried out in the West, such approaches are in their infancy on the African continent. This article explores narrative at three levels from the influence of Western meta narratives to the national and more personal narratives of teachers and students. Drawing on two periods of narrative field work in Ghana and South Africa, the article concludes with a discussion of three important lessons to be learnt from the field: that the relationship between ‘grand’ hegemonic narratives and individual life histories needs to be re-thought; that context and culture provide the hermeneutic ‘glue’ that provides meaning to the field narratives; and that narrative research can provide alternative sources of evidence for policymakers.

scholarly journals Host-Guest Relationships in Non-Commercial Tourism Settings: WWOOFing in New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Dagmar Cronauer
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Interpersonal Relationships ◽  
Social Exchange ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Two Dimensions ◽  
Multiple Roles ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Organic Farms ◽  
Interpersonal Connectedness ◽  
The Relationship

<p>This study investigates host-­guest elationships in a non‐commercial tourism setting within the context of WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) in New Zealand. WWOOF is a worldwide membership network of organic farms, and is comprised of non‐monetary exchange relationships between WWOOF hosts and guests (WWOOFers). It involves tourists offering their help with activities on these farms in exchange for accommodation and food. The purpose of this research is to examine WWOOF hosts and guests’ meanings and understandings of the host‐guest relationship and the dynamics that influence the nature of the WWOOF encounter. An examination of hosts and guests’ expectations and their subsequent effect on the encounter, and of personal outcomes, assist in making sense of the multiple roles of both parties. The study contributes to the limited research that explores non‐commercial host‐guest relationships in tourism. Through consulting literature on the commercial home, it builds on previous work on WWOOFing by focusing on hosts and guests’ perceptions rather than only one perspective. It gives voice to an under‐acknowledged group of hosts and tourists, who are not counted as contributors to economic development of tourism in New Zealand. The research  was developed within a social constructivist paradigm. Using phenomenological methodology, in‐depth interviews with hosts and guests in New Zealand allowed for a thorough analysis of their personal narratives of the WWOOF experience, and the host‐guest relationships. Twenty‐eight interviews were conducted during June and July 2011  (some with two interviewees): resulting in data from 24 hosts and 15 WWOOFers. The findings suggest that WWOOF hosts and guests interact within work and social dimensions. The work dimension dictates that the guest offer help with work on the organic property in return for accommodation and  food provided by the host. The social dimension demands interpersonal exchange and social bonds are developed. A model is presented, which demonstrates that host‐guest relationships in WWOOFing evolve and are constantly being negotiated and evaluated. Hosts and guests have multiple roles within the two dimensions: employer‐employee, host‐guest, (family) host‐family member, and friends. These roles are dependent on the level of formalisation of the encounter and the level of interpersonal connectedness. The encounter involves the host’s obligation to meet the needs of the guest and the guest’s obligation to adhere to implicit and explicit rules and guidelines determined by the host. Space and time are mostly shared within the host’s home or hosting space. The study shows that the relationships that occur are complex and multi‐faceted. The various dimensions, which are essential in creating closer, interpersonal relationships, are negotiated within various levels of the relationship. The aspects that influence the roles adopted in work and social spheres and the evolution of the relationship require an understanding of the temporal roles of hosts and guests, trust, shared values and stories, as well as work and social exchange elements.</p>

scholarly journals Syrian Men’s Disability and Their Masculine Trajectories in the Context of Displacement in Jordan and Turkey

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 305-325
Author(s):  
Aitemad Muhanna-Matar
Keyword(s):  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Family Values ◽  
Multiple Identities ◽  
Patriarchal Family ◽  
Syrian Refugee ◽  
Refugee Community ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Disabled ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Refugee Men

Abstract This article analyzes the relationship between men’s physical disability and the trajectories of negotiating masculinities in the context of Syrian refugee displacement in Jordan and Turkey. The article draws its analysis from the personal narratives of five displaced Syrian refugee men who sustained injuries during the war in Syria. It explores how Syrian refugee men with disabilities remake their masculine bodies and selves to create a new version of masculinity that responds to the changes in their socioeconomic circumstances and bodies. The article argues that the disabled Syrian refugee men went through multiple and contradictory masculine trajectories that intersect with multiple identities and different types of disability. Disabled Syrian refugee men’s emergent masculine embodiments created a version of masculinity that, although it adhered to the patriarchal family values of connectivity and intimacy, does not in its practice legitimate domination within the family and in the Syrian refugee community.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document