Deck 1: Anthropology: Asking Questions About Humanity

Question 1

The subfield of anthropology that studies human evolution, including human genetics and human nutrition, is called

A) biological anthropology.
B) linguistic anthropology.
C) cultural anthropology.
D) archaeology.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The subfield of anthropology that studies the material remains of past cultures is called

A) biological anthropology.
B) linguistic anthropology.
C) cultural anthropology.
D) archaeology.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

The advent of systemic comparisons through careful observation of people occurred during

A) the Industrial Revolution.
B) the Renaissance.
C) the Enlightenment.
D) the Dark Ages.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

When did anthropology emerge as an academic discipline?

A) 400 BCE
B) 1800s
C) 1900s
D) 1500s

Question 5

In anthropology, what is the term that refers to taken-for-granted notions, rules, moralities, and behaviors within a social group that feel natural and suggest the way things should be.

A) Diversity
B) Holism
C) Culture
D) Colonialism

Question 6

Holism

A) synthesizes the entirety of the human experience.
B) is part of the scientific method.
C) is a universal truth.
D) counts, measures, and constructs statistical models.

Question 7

The historical practice of more powerful countries claiming possession of less powerful ones is called _______ and was a driving force in anthropology.

A) Globalization
B) Colonialism
C) Ethnographic fieldwork
D) Evolutionism

Question 8

During colonialism, the perception of non-Western peoples as primitive or savage is referred to as the process of

A) evolution.
B) salvaging.
C) enculturation.
D) othering.

Question 9

Individuals with an undergraduate or graduate background in anthropology are prepared to be ________, because they recognize that even in the most seemingly chaotic situation, there are social, historical, institutional, natural, and cultural patterns at work, and they are deft at identifying and understanding those patterns.

A) Pattern-seekers
B) Critical thinkers
C) Relationship builders
D) Adapters

Question 10

What field of study examines moral questions of right and wrong and standards of appropriate behavior?

A) Anthropology
B) Ethics
C) Political science
D) Sociology

Question 11

___________ is an approach in anthropology that directly addresses issues of social justice, such as poor health and political disempowerment.

A) Radical social science
B) Action anthropology
C) Practicing archaeology
D) Cultural anthropology

Question 12

The scientific method begins with

A) a hypothesis.
B) the observation of a fact.
C) an experiment.
D) detailed measurements.

Question 13

Anthropology is the study of human beings, their biology, their prehistory and histories, and their changing languages, cultures, and social institutions.

Question 14

A key concern in the 1850s that shaped the discipline of anthropology was the emergence of a new scientific theory called "evolution."

Question 15

Historical archaeologists excavate sites where written historical documentation exists that provides an accurate description of the way the people actually lived.

Question 16

Contemporary cultural anthropologists rank societies along an evolutionary scale from "primitive" to "advanced" to categorize human diversity.

Question 17

What process involves shifting from an agricultural economy to a factory-based one?

A) Modernization
B) Industrialization
C) Neoliberalization
D) Globalization

Question 18

During anthropological fieldwork, cultural anthropologists

A) learn the local language, record people's economic transactions, and study how environmental changes affect agriculture.
B) examine items of material culture and the rise of cities and states.
C) excavate sites where written historical documentation exists in order to understand the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture.
D) study how language use is shaped by group membership and identify and how language helps people organize their cultural beliefs and ideologies.

Question 19

Linguistic anthropologists study

A) people's economic transactions and how environmental changes affect agriculture.
B) the written historical documentation in order to understand the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture.
C) the quantitative patterns in land use from census data.
D) how our language evolved, how our mouths form words, and how indigenous people classify their social worlds.

Question 20

A key element of the scientific method, which both explains things and guides research, is

A) participant observation.
B) theories.
C) universal truths.
D) hypothesis.

Question 21

In a study where an anthropologist is collecting stories, memories, beliefs, jokes, conversations, interviews, and disagreements, he or she is collecting what kind of data?

A) Quantitative
B) Qualitative
C) Archival
D) Ethnocentric

Question 22

When an anthropologist examines birthing practices in the United States and Mexico, he or she is employing

A) the scientific method.
B) cultural relativism.
C) participant observation.
D) the comparative method.

Question 23

The comparative method

A) is used only by linguistic anthropologists studying two or more languages.
B) suggests that all societies pass through stages, from primitive state to complex civilization.
C) explains the sheer variety of ways of being human around the world.
D) refers to the practice of comparing two or more cultures.

Question 24

What is the category of anthropological work in which the anthropologist not only performs research but also gets involved in the design, implementation, and management of some organization, process, or product?

A) Salvage ethnography
B) Comparative anthropology
C) Natural selection
D) Practicing anthropology

Question 25

An ethical approach to anthropological research emphasizes

A) a commitment to doing minimal harm.
B) the acceptance of low-risk clandestine research.
C) responsibilities toward the host country and the people being studied.
D) a responsibility for informed consent only when the participants speak the same language as the anthropologist.

Question 26

___________ is an approach in anthropology that directly addresses issues of social justice, such as poor health and political disempowerment.

A) Radical social science
B) Action anthropology
C) Practicing archaeology
D) Cultural anthropology

Question 27

It is important to be clear about the anthropological work you are doing in any field site; therefore, it is important to get the permission of your subjects by

A) force.
B) any means necessary.
C) informed consent.
D) archival documents.

Question 28

Research that involves interviews, observations, images, objects, and words is a study.

Question 29

Some anthropologists believe that the ethical principle of " " is not enough, and that anthropologists have a responsible to actively "do good" in a society.

Question 30

Anthropologists like E. E. Evans-Pritchard and Renato Rosaldo do not see cultural anthropology as a science.

Question 31

Anthropologists have effectively put their discipline to work addressing difficult social, health, and educational problems.

Question 32

Anthropologists have a responsibility to the public, including the obligation to disseminate the findings of their research-even when certain findings might lower public opinion about a group of people.

Question 33

A relativistic perspective on the meanings of Coca-Cola in Tzotzil Maya communities in Chiapas, Mexico, would emphasize that

A) they, the Tzotzil, are dominated by globalization.
B) the Maya are becoming a lot more like people from the United States.
C) those meanings are only sensible within a culturally specific set of ideas about religion and spirituality.
D) the Maya love carbonated beverages.

Question 34

An evolutionary perspective would be most likely to explain colonialism as

A) the natural abilities of more civilized people to control less civilized people.
B) the role of Enlightenment ideas in explaining cultural difference.
C) that more evolved countries shouldn't get involved in other countries.
D) a useful, holistic response to social problems.

Question 35

A quantitative approach to studying the archaeological past would be most interested in

A) the organizing of images, recordings, field notes, and documents about a field site.
B) the personal impressions of the archaeologist him- or herself.
C) the comparison of several distinct field sites.
D) building and testing hypotheses by collecting, classifying, and measuring the remains of past cultures.

Question 36

Describe how a cultural relativist would study the ethical principles of another culture.

Question 37

How could an anthropological perspective on diversity be used to explain social change in your community?

Question 38

What role do you think the scientific method plays in the application of anthropology to solving social problems?

Question 39

How would you use anthropology's holistic perspective to understand the effects of low-fat diets in American lives?

Question 40

Could you apply the primary ethical principles of anthropology to another academic discipline? Why or why not?

Question 41

What is a common thread or theme that runs through all of the subfields of anthropology?

Question 42

What were the main concerns that emerged in the 1850s, and how did they shape professional anthropology?

Question 43

Why do you think anthropologists are so concerned with the ethics of research?