1. Anthropologists rely on fieldwork to:
a. describe and explain diverse cultures.
b. study how people think rather than how they behave.
c. avoiding having to test hypotheses.
d. generate laws of universal behavior.
e. document the growth of indigenous communities.
2. Ethnographic fieldwork can best be described as:
a. mechanistic.
b. experiential.
c. deterministic.
d. evolutionary.
e. analytical.
3. Which of the following best describes participatory action research?
a. It always involves an anthropologist gathering data firsthand.
b. It involves the anthropologist living with and observing the people studied.
c. It is a type of research in which the anthropologist and community work together to find solutions.
d. It is a kind of advocacy research in which the anthropologist represents the people studied in order to better
their lives.
e. It is research that is headed by indigenous peoples and not the anthropologist as an outsider.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
4. Data gathered from personal interviews, observations, and oral histories is:
a. socio-cultural.
b. historical.
c. methodological.
d. quantitative.
e. qualitative.
5. Which of the following is NOT a common approach in ethnographic fieldwork?
a. Study of complete, functioning societies
b. Face-to-face interviews
c. Use of personal first-hand information
d. A holistic approach
e. Use of random sampling
6. Research grants for ethnographic fieldwork are awarded:
a. on a highly competitive basis.
b. to all deserving students of anthropology.
c. to all students in graduate programs of anthropology.
d. but few anthropologists actually do research overseas today.
e. to those who do work in biomedical research.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
7. Permission or clearance from a host government must be obtained for fieldwork:
a. although anthropologists are legally allowed to work in any part of the world.
b. although few countries pay much attention to the research interests of anthropologists.
c. because most countries want to make sure the research will not be embarrassing or politically sensitive.
d. because host governments work to create diplomatic ties with the United States.
e. sothattheanthropologist’ssafetycanbemonitoredatalltimesbythehostgovernmentandthe
anthropologist’sembassy.
8. Learning another language is:
a. seldom part of the anthropologist’s preparation for fieldwork.
b. always accomplished before the anthropologist enters the field site.
c. necessary only when an interpreter cannot be found.
d. an important part of the tradition of anthropological fieldwork.
e. required in fieldwork, whether or not the anthropologist travels to another country.
9. Anthropological fieldwork in recent decades has:
a. produced mostly general ethnographies.
b. been more focused on political and social problems.
c. been more problem-oriented than in earlier times.
d. been more comparative, often involving more than one fieldsite.
e. occurred mainly within the United States.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
10. The research problem selected for the Jamaica Agroforestry Project (JAP) included:
a. increasing the amount of trees planted and harvested and also developing markets for commerce.
b. increasing grazing foods available for livestock and decreasing soil erosion.
c. training local dockworkers to be commercial farmers.
d. working with local populations to train forest managers and increase conservation awareness.
e. introducing trees from other countries so that Jamaica could produce wood for export.
11. Deciding who might be most likely to participate in an applied project is part of which stage of fieldwork?
a. Analyzing the data
b. Collecting the data
c. Formulating a research design
d. Selecting a research problem
e. Interpreting the data
12. Which fieldwork techniques are best for collecting data?
a. Survey and random sampling
b. Participant observation and use of questionnaires
c. Photography, participant observation, and random sampling
d. Interviews and participant observation
e. Taking census data and living with the people in their native villages
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
13. For the Jamaica Agroforestry Project (JAP), Susan Andreatta looked for patterns in the data. Why is this a
significant approach?
a. Patterns signify the more resistant areas of cultural behavior.
b. Patterns suggest general trends and behaviors that affect the group as a whole.
c. Patterns are significant because they must be modified in order for any change to occur.
d. Through patterns the anthropologist can apply quantitative field research methods that provide accurate data.
e. This was the only time that an anthropologist had used pattern data in research.
14. Collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data are all part of:
a. selecting a research problem.
b. formulating a research design.
c. the preliminary preparation for anthropological fieldwork.
d. conducting field research.
e. using a multidisciplinary approach.
15. Why did the applied anthropologist in the Jamaica Agroforestry Project (JAP) propose that nitrogen-fixing trees be
planted?
a. These trees would create greater amounts of oxygen and clean air.
b. Nitrogen-fixing trees grow at a slower rate and can be harvested much more quickly.
c. Trees that use nitrogen create a much stronger wood that can be used commercially.
d. Nitrogen-fixing trees stabilize an area against erosion and can be used as feed for livestock.
e. These were the only kinds of trees that Jamaica had available at low cost.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
16. Which statement about data collection used in anthropology is true?
a. Participant-observation always is appropriate for cross-cultural research.
b. Methods that work in one culture might not be appropriate for a neighboring culture.
c. Photography is appropriate only in public settings.
d. Structured interviews should always be used early in the fieldwork.
e. A variety of methods ensures that the research data will not contain bias.
17. The data-gathering technique used most often by anthropologists is:
a. structured interviews.
b. questionnaires.
c. participant observation.
d. document analysis.
e. intensive semi-structured interviews.
18. Which of the following is NOT part of the advice that Ferraro gives for conducting participant-observation
fieldwork?
a. Proceed slowly.
b. Secure permission from the top down in the political hierarchy.
c. Never eat the local food unless you’ve seen it prepared.
d. Be consistent in how you explain who you are.
e. Communicate to the local people that you are there to be a student.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
19. What is the primary reason that a fieldworker should slow down and not proceed so quickly in the work?
a. At the beginning, most fieldworkers do not know enough to ask productive questions. They must first learn
about the community.
b. Fieldworkers should not work quickly because this is usually interpreted as being impatient and rude.
c. Small,localvillagersareoftenverybusywiththeirownlivesandcannotworkaroundtheanthropologist’s
schedule.
d. Work that is completed quickly does not take into account the changes that occur over a long period of
fieldwork.
e. Anthropologists must remain in the field for at least one year and should not hurry to finish the work sooner.
20. Which of the following is the most important advantage of participant observation?
a. It does not lead to easily comparable or reproducible data.
b. It is practical only among small group sizes.
c. It has an obtrusive effect on the subject matter.
d. Recording information can be challenging.
e. It generally enhances rapport.
21. A disadvantage of participant-observation is that:
a. only a small sample can be studied.
b. nonverbal behavior cannot be observed.
c. rapport is enhanced, but this creates bias in the work.
d. actual behavior cannot be distinguished from expected behavior.
e. it takes too long to complete the research well.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
22. Participant-observation has the advantage of:
a. providing a large sample size.
b. ease of recording of data.
c. being an unobtrusive data gathering technique.
d. enabling fieldworkers to distinguish actual from expected behavior.
e. creating standardized, scientific data.
23. In Tanzania, Hadley, Wutich, and McCarty re-worked their community-based survey so they would have a more
accurate picture of:
a. employment opportunities.
b. access to food.
c. poverty.
d. disease.
e. access to health care.
24. In Bolivia, Hadley, Wutich, and McCarty identified various categories where water insecurity affected local people.
Which of the following is NOT one of their categories?
a. Health outcomes
b. Water quantity
c. Religious beliefs
d. Economic issues
e. Water conflicts
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
25. Unstructured interviews:
a. seldom provide useful or accurate data because the interviewer does not provide questions.
b. shouldonlybeusedattheendofone’sfieldwork.
c. contain open-ended questions and are paced by the interviewees, not the interviewer.
d. are all very short in duration because they never cover major topics.
e. always involve at least three individuals.
26. When conducting ethnographic interviews, you should:
a. use simple, unambiguous questions and leave the controversial questions for the end of the interview.
b. obtain informed consent after the interview is completed.
c. schedule the interview for a long period of time so the interviewee has time to relax.
d. let the interviewee see the tape recorder and feel important about having the session taped.
e. try to schedule several interviews so the interviewee can discuss details and seek clarification from neighbors
and friends.
27. The ethnographic interview is different from the sociological or psychological interview because:
a. the interviewer and the subject almost always speak different first languages.
b. an ethnographic interview is much narrower in scope.
c. an ethnographic interview always focuses on the experiences of a single individual.
d. an ethnographic interview is typically used alone without other sources of data.
e. an ethnographic interview involves large groups of people.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
28. The collection of basic demographic data is considered part of which ethnographic field method?
a. Ethnographic mapping
b. Census taking
c. Photography
d. Structured interviews
e. Document analysis
29. Anthropologists collect information on all the relatives (kin) of the informant by:
a. mapping.
b. the genealogical method.
c. proxemic analysis.
d. document analysis.
e. census taking.
30. What is the primary advantage of document analysis as an ethnographic field method?
a. It is a documented record and can therefore be tested and proved.
b. It almost always involves multiple perspectives and accounts of a problem.
c. Official documents are easy to obtain and can be used as ways to prompt interviewees to share information.
d. It does not cost much to do this kind of work.
e. It is non-intrusive and provides large quantities of information.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
31. All of the following are potential benefits of using photography in fieldwork EXCEPT:
a. members of the community can use photography to document an emic point of view.
b. pictures can be used as a way of specifying and encouraging topics in the interview.
c. photographs are useful as ways to document cultural artifacts.
d. pictures can be used to provide collectable data on land-use patterns.
e. people of all cultures like to have their pictures taken.
32. How people in different cultures use space is known as:
a. archival analysis.
b. statistical analysis.
c. proxemic analysis.
d. document analysis.
e. mapping.
33. Which of the following is NOT a common applied field method?
a. Urban action assessment
b. Focus groups
c. Rapid ethnographic assessment
d. Community-based participatory research
e. Surveys
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
34. Under which of the following applied field techniques does the community itself contact the research professional for
help in creating change?
a. Focus groups
b. Community-based participatory research
c. Participatory rural appraisal
d. Unstructured interviews
e. Rapid ethnographic assessment
35. The validity of anthropological data can be routinely checked by:
a. never asking more than one person the same question.
b. asking a single individual the same question repeatedly over a period of time.
c. using photographs to document ethnographic reality and reveal inconsistencies in interviews.
d. asking another anthropologist to do a re-study of the field site.
e. comparing data collected with what has previously been published about the area or topic.
36. The primary objective in fieldwork is that anthropologists:
a. represent their universities with respect.
b. work with other scientists so communities get maximum help.
c. do fieldwork that will have a long-term benefit to the people.
d. become friends with the people with whom they work.
e. carry out all ethical responsibilities.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology
37. An anthropologist decides on which techniques to use based primarily upon:
a. the nature of the problem being studied and receptivity of the people.
b. a realistic appraisal of what he or she can achieve in a short period.
c. the kinds of information that will be most useful to the host government.
d. the topographical sequence in the community.
e. what the community has been exposed to in the past.
38. Culture shock includes which of the following set of symptoms?
a. A sense of confidence about the proper way to behave
b. A loss of self-esteem
c. A sense of being accepted by members of the other culture
d. A feeling of having total control over the situation
e. Afeelingthatthecommunity’scultureisfarsuperiortotheanthropologist’sownculture
39. Why is culture shock such a significant aspect of handling fieldwork situations?
a. It is an attribute of those fieldworkers who have less experience and is a key component in teaching
ethnographic field methods.
b. Culture shock most acutely affects the community studied and must be handled wisely in order to preserve the
field situation for future researchers.
c. Culture shock is exceedingly common and occurs to almost every anthropologist, regardless of years of
experience.
d. Fieldwork cannot be conducted when an anthropologist is suffering from culture shock.
e. It is a sign that the anthropologist should leave the community immediately.
Chapter5—AppliedAnthropology:MethodsinCulturalAnthropology