Cognitive Anthropology A Qualitative Research Tradition

Qualitative Research Traditions  Characterized by: –assumptions about human nature and society –focus of the study –methodology Jacob, E. (1987). Qualitative Research Traditions: A Review, Review of Educational Research, 57(1), 1-50.

Example Traditions  Ecological Psychology  Holistic Ethnography  Ethnography of Communication  Symbolic Interactionism  Cognitive Anthropology –Ethnoscience –New Ethnography

Cognitive Anthropology  Developed by Goodenough and Frake –Based heavily on linguistics  Study culture –Mentalistic Terms Cultural categories Organizing principles

Assumptions  Culture –“Cognitive organizations of material phenomena”  Groups have unique system for perceiving and organizing the world  Cultural knowledge reflected in language –Semantics –Organized –Related

Implications  Do not study behavior  Linguistics –Relationships between words

Focus  Description of organization of cognitive system  2 questions: –“What material phenomena are significant for the people of some culture?” –“How do they organize these phenomena?”

Implications  Compare individual culture –Then compare across cultures  Focus on Organizing principles –Not on substantive aspects  No theory testing

Methodology  Description using participant’s categories  Cyclical  Identify symbols and relationships  Hypothesis testing

More Methodology  Recording verbatim  Natural settings  Open-ended, descriptive questions  Controlled eliciting  Formal analysis

Formal Analysis  Internal consistency  Completeness  Form  Types: –domain analysis –taxonomic analysis –componential analysis –theme analysis

Applications  Mentalistic culture  Few done in educational settings  Two types: –Description of culture –Study of educational problems

Description of Culture  Study of school settings  Sex Role culture w/in school  Teacher’s images of knowledge  Behavior b/w teachers and students  Categories of play b/w boys at recess

Study of Educational Problems  Reading process  College students’ career choices  Social-race relations in school

Disclaimers  Source –Paper –Presenter  Qualitative applications –whole or part?