Applied and Contemporary Anthropology: Development, Health, Environment and Applied Fields
This domain tests how anthropological methods address practical problems. Expect development, health, environment and applied specialisations.
Core concepts
Applied anthropology uses ethnographic knowledge in policy, planning and evaluation. Development anthropology studies displacement, resettlement, participation and inequality; it warns against ethnocentric “top-down” projects. Medical anthropology examines health beliefs, medical pluralism, stigma and access; it does not dismiss local healing as ignorance. Environmental anthropology studies traditional ecological knowledge, common property and human-environment relations. Applied fields include forensic anthropology, nutritional anthropology, business anthropology, museum work, NGO practice and human rights.
Worked example
A resettlement plan for a dam is assessed. A narrow cost-benefit analysis counts compensation. An anthropological assessment adds baseline land use, kinship networks, common-pool resources, gendered labour and ritual sites. Reasoning: compensation may not restore livelihoods if common resources and social networks are lost, so participatory mapping and household surveys are needed.
Traps that cost marks
Do not treat a community as homogeneous; gender, age and class create different interests. Do not equate development with economic growth alone. Do not call local health beliefs “superstition” without analysis. Do not ignore ethics, consent and benefit-sharing.
Key points
- Applied anthropology brings ethnographic methods to policy and practice.
- Development anthropology analyses displacement, participation and livelihood loss.
- Medical anthropology studies beliefs, pluralism and access to care.
- Environmental anthropology values traditional ecological knowledge and common property.
- Applied fields include forensic, nutritional, business and NGO anthropology.