Clinically Applied Anthropology: Anthropologists in Health Science Settings

Description

like other collections of papers related to a single topic, this volume arose out of problem-sharing and problem-solving discussions among some of the authors. The two principal recurring issues were (1) the difficulties in translating anthropo­ logical knowledge so that our students could use it and (2) the difficulties of bringing existing medical anthropology literature to bear on this task. As we talked to other anthropologists teaching in other parts of the country and in various health-related schools, we recognized that our problems were similar. Similarities in our solutions led the Editors to believe that publication of our teaching experi­ ences and research relevant to teaching would help others and might begin the process of generating principles leading to a more coherent approach. Our colleagues supported this idea and agreed to contribute. What we agreed to write about was 'Clinically Applied Anthropology'. Much of what we were doing and certainly much of the relevant literature was applied anthropology. And our target group was composed-mostly of clinicians. The utility of the term became apparent after 1979 when another set of anthropologists began to discuss 'ainical Anthropology'. They too recognized the range of novel be­ haviors available to anthropologists in the health science arena and chose to focus on the clinical use of anthropology. We see this as an important endeavor, but very different from what we are proposing.