Culture is essentially related to people's ability to use language and other symbolic forms of

representation, such as art, to form and communicate complex thoughts. Anthropologists therefore also
study people's languages and other forms of communication.Concerning evolution, some
anthropologists also believe that human evolution explains much about humans.

Felds of Anthropology

Anthropology is a very broad field of study. Practically, anthropologists focus on specific areas of
interest. These fields are interrelated though each of them demands special training and implicates
different research techniques

Cultural anthropology (also called socio-cultural anthropology, social anthropology, and ethnology)
studies about the cultural aspects of human societies all over the world. Cultural anthropologists are
interested in things such as the social and political organizations, marriage patterns and kinship systems,
subsistence and economic patterns, and religious beliefs of different societies.

Meaning, most cultural anthropologists examine contemporary societies rather than ancient ones

They usually live for months or years with the people they study. This is called fieldwork, which may
require some training in linguistics (the study of the sounds and grammar of languages) as
comprehending new, and sometimes unwritten languages, is sometimes needed. Cultural
anthropologists normally write book-length accounts of their fieldwork, called 'ethnographies.

Linguistic Anthropology

What goes on in a linguistic anthropology class is very different from what goes on in an English or a
foreign language class. Anthropological linguists are not language teachers or professional translators.
Instead, they study the human communication process. They examine phenomena such as the
physiology of speech, the structure and function of languages, the cultural and social influences on
speech and writing, the nonverbal communication, how various languages developed over time, and
how they differ from each other.

Archaeology

. Archaeologists usually study artifacts (the remains of items made by past humans, like tools, pottery,
and buildings) and human fossils (preserved bones). They methodically uncover the evidence by
excavating, dating, and analyzing these material remains left by people in the past.

Archaeology is a vast field that no archaeologist is an expert on the antiquity of all time periods and all
regions of the world. 'Classical archaeologists' focus on the ancient civilizations of the Middle East and
the Mediterranean world, such as Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome. 'Historical archaeologists'
attempt to recover the unrecorded aspects of life in historically more modern societies like the colonial
America. Prehistoric archaeologists concentrate on the more ancient pre-literate societies (cultures that
existed before the development of writing, a time known as 'prehistory') including those of most early
North American Indians.

On the other hand, Paleoanthropologists archaeologically study the periods of the so-called human
evolution up to the first development of agriculture, about 10,000 years ago.

Physical Anthropology

By non-cultural, we mean all of those biological characteristics that are genetically inherited in contrast
to learned. By 'near-human, we refer to a category that includes monkeys, apes, and the other primates
as well as our fossil ancestors. Physical anthropology also studies the connections between human
biology and culture.

Basically, physical anthropology comprises three different areas of research: human biology,
primatology, or paleoanthropology.

Research Methods

In their research, anthropologists use both objective (scientific) and subjective (interpretive) methods.
They systematically collect information to answer specific research questions and document their work
so that other researchers can duplicate it.

Admittedly though, many anthropologists also conduct informal kinds of research, including impromptu
discussions with and observations of the peoples they study. Anthropologists sometimes find persons
within the society being studied who are especially knowledgeable and who are willing to become so-
called informants. Informants normally enjoy talking with a sympathetic outsider who aims to interpret
and record their culture.

However, some of the more common categories of anthropological research methods include (1)
immersion in a culture, (2) analysis of how people interact with their environment, (3) linguistic analysis,
(4) archaeological analysis, and (5) analysis of human biology.
A. Cultural Immersion

Immersion in a culture, as an anthropological research method, may include the so-called

Observational Methods

The methods involve observing the group or individuals, recording the findings, reflecting on the
findings, and may include openly participating with the community. The method uses an "etic
perspective to simply observe the facets of cultures" ("Fieldwork Methods," n.d.).

Interviews and Questionnaires

Interviews may occur individually or with focus groups within the community, like based on age, status,
gender, and other factors that contribute to differences within the community.

Interview strives to create an open dialogue, or dialectic, in which information flows back and forth
between researcher and subject, a process which may pose a challenge to the objectivity of socially
produced data. Questionnaires, on the other hand, may produce answers which lack background
information or description.

Participant Observation

Many anthropological researches involve long-term, direct observation of and participation in the life of
another culture. This practice, known as participant observation, allows anthropologists to get an
insider's view of how and why other people do what they do.

The method requires that the anthropologist participate in the culture they are investigating as well as
merely observing it. It allows a deeper immersion into the culture studied, resulting in a deeper
understanding of it. It gives the researcher a chance to speak with those people within that culture
which may develop a deeper rapport with the people of the culture and result in them opening up more
to the researcher.
Reflexivity

The method reminds that anthropologists must be constantly aware that the information they are
gathering may be twisted or slanted by their ethical views or political biases.

The method mandates that reflexive fieldwork must retain a respect for detailed, accurate information
gathering while also paying attention to the ethical and political context of research, the background of
the researchers themselves, and the full cooperation of informants. Reflexivity is needed to better
understand other cultures. It is important to put the researchers' own opinions and ways of life aside so
they can open their mind to see how others live. Nonetheless, it is oftentimes hard to notice whether or
not one is using reflexivity.

Life Histories

Anthropologists, in some cases, may also record extensive life histories of persons with whom they have
gained good relationships. Life history refers to the conveyed entire life experience of a person, usually
starting at childhood and continuing to the present.

Older people commonly volunteer to tell their life stories, often because they have seen many cultural
changes since their youth and enjoy telling of past experiences and lessons learned. Those stories can
offer valuable insights on how cultures change. By collecting an array of life histories, an anthropological
researcher can gain a better understanding of a culture.

Participatory Approach

This method requires full participation of the researchers with their subjects or culture they are
studying. Participatory approach strives to get as close to an 'emic perspective' as possible, that is, being
involved in a community as possible to the extent that a native would be. The method requires the
researcher to live with the community eat as the people there do and act as they do.
The participatory action research involves a community commitment to change. It occurs in five steps:

1. education on the process or creating a dialogue, 2. collective investigation,

3. collective interpretation,

4. collective action, and

5. transformation: self-determination and empowerment.

Under this fieldwork method, the research is an analysis of the community's behavior by community
members. In the participatory action research, not only are community members by necessity motivated
to work on the problem, they will also have significant rapport with other members to help analyze and
address it. The dynamic attributes of the method allow constant reevaluation and change ("Fieldwork
Methods," n.d.).