Saturday, October 25, 2008

Hijacked academic discipline?

Share/Bookmark

1 comment:

  1. I find it interesting that an academic would automatically consider that ethnography would "exploit" a class of people because of the findings. This seems to be the common reaction by this profession that anything other than a academic use of the information is some way makes someone a bucket of money at the expense of the consumer.
    So let me pose a different question: when ethnographic research fuels insights that contribute to product design improvements that improves the quality of life of the end user how does the academic fraternity see this? Opps! The poor people have been exploited again. ???
    Perhaps any contribution is just design and no amount (zero) of applied anthropology can do anything to inform or contextualize opportunities for new developments that have meaningful benefits?
    Perhaps a more candid question is “how might academics allow themselves to walk the path in between theory and applied anthropology”?
    Is the notion of research results that inform context around a human problem really aiding and abetting?
    This interview suggests there is only a polarization – this interview seems to imply that ethnography is either purely academic or it is a criminal offence to humanity?

    WOW. How is it then that many anthropologists complain that leaders in industry don’t understand anthropology or see the value in their work.

    A bit more introspection please!

    ReplyDelete