Epistemology, Fieldwork, and Anthropology

by Olivier de Sardan, Jean-Pierre; Tidjani Alou, Antoinette

• ISBN13: 9781137488497
• ISBN10: 1137488492
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2015-05-06
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

Epistemology, Fieldwork, and Anthropology provides a systematic examination of the empirical foundations of interpretations and grounded theories in anthropology. Olivier de Sardan explores the nature of the links between observed reality and the data produced during fieldwork, and between the data gathered and final interpretative statements. Olivier de Sardan's research asks how anthropologists develop a 'policy of fieldwork', what the advantages and limits of observation are, and if the dangers of over-interpretation and scientific ideologies be minimized. Exploring the space between epistemology and methodology, the book critically juxtaposes Anglo and Francophone writings about fieldwork, plausible interpretations, emicity, reflexivity, comparison, and scientific rigor.

Author Biography

Jean-Pierre Olivier de Sardan is Professor of Anthropology at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences, France.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: Empirical Adequacy, Theory, Anthropology
2. The Policy of Fieldwork. Data Production in Anthropology And Qualitative Approaches
3. Emic and the Actors' Point Of View
4. From Observation To Description
5. The Methodological 'I': Implication and Explicitation in Fieldwork
6. Methodological Populism and Ideological Populism in Anthropology
7. The Violence Done To Data: On A Few Figures of Over-Interpretation
8. Common Sense and Scholarly Sense. Conclusion
Postface: Researcher And Citizen: Science And Ideology