Cultural Anthropology Applied anthropology, Social Policy 2251. Arborio, S., Strzykala, J., Toniolo, A.-M., Deforge, H., . . ., Hasco€et, J.-M. (2020). Networks as culture: Understanding and accounting for risks within networks of medico-social actors. Anthropology & Medicine, 27, 64–79. Networks form the cement of interpersonal ties rooted in particular histories around a ‘user’ that are conveyed through individual narratives. 2252. Berish, D., Nelson, I., Mehdizadeh, S., & Applebaum, R. (2019). Is there a woodwork effect? Addressing a 200-year debate on the impacts of expanding community-based services. Journal of Aging and Social Policy, 31, 85–98. States can make significant strides in homeand community-based services expansion without increasing the overall long-term services utilization rate. 2253. Emielu, A. & Donkor, G.T. (2019). Highlife music without alcohol? Interrogating the concept of gospel highlife in Ghana and Nigeria. Journal of the Musical Arts in Africa, 16(1–2), 29–44. The concept is nested in an interest-bound epistemological premise that reflects social, economic and gendered imperatives. 2254. Johnson, O., St. Vil, C., Gilbert, K.L., Goodman, M., & Johnson, C.A. (2019). How neighborhoods matter in fatal interactions between police and men of color. Social Science & Medicine, 220, 226–235. Hispanic males were over 2.6 times more likely as others to be killed by officers from agencies with relatively higher percentages of Hispanic officers. Abstracts in Anthropology 2020, Vol. 76(7) 575–638 ! The Author(s) 2020 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions DOI: 10.1177/0001345520941120 journals.sagepub.com/home/aax 2255. Lepore, M., Greene, A.M., Porter, K., Lux, L., . . ., Hawes, C. (2019). Unlicensed care homes in the United States: A clandestine sector of longterm care. Journal of Aging and Social Policy, 31, 49–65. Regulations, policies, and practices that might influence unlicensed care homes prevalence are discussed. 2256. Meyer, K., Rath, L., Gassoumis, Z., Kaiser, N., & Wilber, K. (2019). What Are strategies to advance policies supporting family caregivers? Promising approaches from a statewide task force. Journal of Aging and Social Policy, 31, 66–84. By presenting specific strategic approaches to advance caregiving policies, we provide tools to address the growing gap between caregiver needs and policy responses. 2257. Miller, E.A., Intrator, O., Gadbois, E., Gidmark, S., & Rudolph, J.L. (2019). VA staff perceptions of barriers and facilitators to home-and community-based placement post–hospital discharge. Journal of Aging and Social Policy, 31, 1–29. We highlight patient-, provider-, and system-level constraints that impede successful placement at home and in the community of veterans in need of longterm services and support after hospitalization. 2258. Schmidt, M. (2019). ‘Almost everybody does it . . . ’ gambling as future-making in Western Kenya. Journal of Eastern African Studies, 13, 739–757. I analyze the practice of regularly placing low-risk bets on football games as a consequence of negating the possibility to plan one’s future in the long term. Arts (Dance, folklore, graphic arts, music) 2259. Akinola, O.C. (2020). The shared pain of a culture’s decline: A study of Femi Abodunrin’s ‘The Dancing Masquerade.’ African Journal of History and Culture, 12(1), 1–6. I scrutinize the uniqueness and relevance of African cultures as they interface with European and Western cultures in the present era of globalization. 576 Abstracts in Anthropology 76(7)
Cultural Anthropology Applied anthropology, Social Policy 1501. Ambrosi-Randi c, N., Neki c, M., & Junakovi c, I.T. (2018). Felt age, desired, and expected lifetime in the context of health, well-being, and successful aging. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 87, 33–51. We consider the importance of some sociodemographic, psychological, and health variables for understanding older persons’ subjective age identity. 1502. Bastian, M. (2019). Retelling time in grassroots sustainable economy movements. GeoHumanities, 5, 36–53. The work of these organizations would be best served by a greater focus on the role of time in coordinating across unequal power relations. 1503. Benavides, R. (2018). It’s not a problem until it’s a problem: How studying social practice can shed light on health culture and type 2 diabetes in Isla Mujeres. Practicing Anthropology, 40, 18–21. I studied the cultural and societal domains of food as a social practice, nutrition, and education that have led to this food-related disease. 1504. Bloom, A. (2018). “Practicing” social services and “practicing” anthropology: A dual perspective on trauma-informed domestic violence care. Practicing Anthropology, 40, 22–25. The author’s dual perspective highlights the potential for shared goals between “practitioners” of social services and “practitioners” of ethnography. 1505. Blum, S.D., Barnes, A., Huggins, K., & Haanstad, E. (2018). Practicing anthropology and “ethnographic engineering” in a community-based ecological project. Practicing Anthropology, 40, 26–28. The team explored “ethnographic engineering” as an emergent collaborative form of practicing anthropology. Abstracts in Anthropology 2020, Vol. 76(5) 387–442 ! The Author(s) 2020 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions DOI: 10.1177/0001345520923848 journals.sagepub.com/home/aax 1506. Boyle, K. & Cools, K. (2018). The great divide: Teaching collaborative methodologies in academia. Practicing Anthropology, 40, 29–32. We argue that it is a disservice to students to maintain this division between “applied” and “practicing” anthropology, as it does not adequately prepare them for a career outside of the academic world. 1507. Dellenborg, L. & Lepp, M. (2018). The development of ethnographic drama to support healthcare professionals. Anthropology in Action, 25(1), 1–14. As a method, it is suited to illuminating, addressing and studying professional relationships and organizational cultures. 1508. Dolberg, P. & Ayalon, L. (2018). Subjective meanings and identification with middle age. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 87, 52–76. This period is characterized by a relief of tasks, broader choice opportunity, a sense of liberation, peace of mind, experience, self-awareness, and selfacceptance. 1509. Forcone, T. & Cohen, J.H. (2018). Questions of consequence: How class work became research and research became a calling. Practicing Anthropology, 40, 33–36. The unique qualities of the food environment on a college campus provided impetus for further research and directed one student to determine her career focus. 1510. Heid, A.R., Pruchno, R., & Wilson-Genderson, M. (2018). Illness representations of multiple chronic conditions and self-management behaviors in older adults: A pilot study. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 87, 90–106. Correlations revealed associations of diet, exercise, and sleep with illness representations of people with arthritis and hypertension. 1511. Herckis, L. (2018). Cultivating practice: Ensuring continuity, acknowledging change. Practicing Anthropology, 40, 43–47. My project is designed to identify barriers and affordances to the adoption of evidence-based instructional practices in higher education. 1512. Igreja, V. (2018). Silence and visual representations of anti-violence campaigns in cosmopolitan Brisbane. Anthropology in Action, 25(1), 15–28. I analyzed people’s perceptions of anti-violence images that were part of a public campaign and assessed the appropriateness of the images’ locations. 388 Abstracts in Anthropology 76(5)
In an attempt to build a modern state, Morocco has embarked on a process of social, economic and political development since its independence in 1956. Numerous projects of development have been implemented both at the national and local levels. These projects have produced new patterns of life which are governed by new values and ideals. In the Ayt Merghad community, values of mutual help and sacrifice for the benefits of the community, which were once defining features of this tribe, have begun to erode. These values are gradually being lost and replaced by more individualistic features. New ideals of individual success and personal achievement have become dominant aspects of the present-day Ayt Merghad community. Therefore, this paper seeks to contribute to a better understanding of the phenomenon. On the one hand, with a special reference to the Ayt Merghad community, it provides a portrayal of people’s attitudes towards collectivism and individualism. On the other hand, it attempts to shed light on the different attributes that reflect Ayt Merghad’s tendency towards individualism and the factors behind such orientation. It can be concluded that under the pressure of socio-economic development, the Ayt Merghad community is moving towards a more individualistic side of the collectivism-individualism continuum. Introduction It has been noticed that the adoption of a more individualistic life pattern in the Ayt Merghad1 community is made necessary by the exigencies of a modernizing society. As a result, values of cooperation and interdependence are being abandoned. In this regard, this paper seeks to contribute to a better understanding of the phenomenon. It tries to account for such a change in the community members’ repertoire of values. Emphasis is put on the gradual loss of collectivism as a significant aspect of the Ayt Merghad culture. From an ethnographic perspective, the researcher attempts to elicit the target community’s attitudes towards the transition from collectivism to individualism. The paper also highlights the factors that have contributed to the spread of the individualism principles. Ayt Merghad: A Brief Overview Ayt Merghad is an Amazigh tribal group whose native language is Tamazight. This community is located in Errachidia, which is situated in the south-east of Morocco. The Ayt Merghad area is bordered by the province of Figuig to the east, Beni Mellal, Azilal and Khenifra to the west, Boulmane to the north and Algeria to the south. A profound reflection on the past of the Ayt Merghad tribe makes it easy to note the community’s excellence in many fields. From an economic perspective, Ayt Merghad were active participants on the economic front as they inhabited Sijilmassa. The area was a source of wealth for numerous other nations while its merchandise assured it penetration into many foreign markets. * Ph. D. in Cultural Studies. Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, Rabat-Morocco. Email: fagaddar@yahoo.com. 1 The phonetic transcription adopted in the present study conforms to the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). Geminate sounds are indicated by means of doubling the consonant. Emphatic sounds are indicated by means of a letter with a dot underneath. Antrocom Online Journal of Anthropology 2014, vol. 10. n. 1 – ISSN 1973 – 2880 5 F. Gaddar– Modernization and Individualism in the Ayt Merghad Community A close look at the history of Morocco offers evidence for the heroic participation of the community in the war against colonization. This tribe reacted violently to the French occupation and showed a strong courage to defend their territory. Under the leadership of influential figures, the Ayt Merghad community participated in various battles against the French army and managed to inflict historic defeats on the colonial soldiers. Their role in the resistance against colonization was a major contribution to the end of the French penetration in the southeast Morocco. Recently, the Ayt Merghad area has undergone a number of socio-economic mutations. Today, the community members benefit from a number of services and infrastructure which was not the case a few decades ago. Road connections and transport facilities to destinations outside the area have improved during the last five decades. The area is also characterized by a good access to communication devices. Urbanization, immigration, the decrease of illiteracy, and the diversification of the economic activities are all prominent aspects that have marked the process of socio-economic development in the Ayt Merghad area. Methodology The data collection technique used in this study is the focus group. In the literature , there are many definitions of a focus group. For example, Powell et al. (1996: 499) define a focus group as “a group of individuals selected and assembled by researchers to discuss and comment on, from personal experience, the topic that is the subject of the research”. Besides, characteristics like organised discussion (Kitzinger, 1995), collective activity (Powell et al. 1996), social events (Goss & Leinbach, 1996) and interaction (Kitzinger, 1995) clarify the contribution that focus groups make to social research. The focus group method is sometimes referred to as ‘a focus group interview’, ‘a group interview’, or ‘a group depth interview’ (Ritchie, 2003). Focus group participants are encouraged to voice their opinions and perceptions about a study topic in a non-threatening and comfortable environment (Barbour & Kitzinger, 1999; Litosseliti, 2003; Krueger & Casey, 2000; Morgan, 1997). The importance of recruiting focus group participants cannot be underestimated. For the information generated to be useful, purposive sampling was opted for in the present study. The focus groups recruitment was conducted mainly through direct contact with people. The three focus groups were composed of a roughly equal mix of males and females, and varied in size from six to eight participants. Nine participants were males whilst eleven were females. The participants’ age ranged between twenty-four and eighty. The researcher acted as a moderator during the focus groups. She tried to keep the participants focussed on the topic of interest and encouraged them to interact and voice their opinions and attitudes. Tamazight was used as it is the language of the target community. The Transition from Collectivism to Individualism in the Ayt Merghad community Generally speaking, individualism and collectivism reflect different social values, attitudes, behaviours and relationships between people in different cultures. It is commonly acknowledged in the literature that individualist and collectivist attitudes are not mutually exclusive but can coexist in different communities (Kim, 1994; Singelis et al., 1995; Sinha & Tripathi, 1994; Triandis, 1995; Triandis et al., 1986). These two concepts are complex constructs and have both been defined in numerous ways by different researchers (e.g., Bellah et al., 1985; Hofstede, 1980, 2001; Kagitçibasi, 1997; Kim, 1994; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Oyserman et al., 2002). Hofstede (1991: 260-261) points out that: “Individualism stands for a society in which the ties between individuals are loose; everyone is expected to look after himself or herself and his or her immediate family only. . . . Collectivism stands for a society in which people from birth onwards are integrated into strong, cohesive in-groups, which throughout people’s lifetime continue to protect them in exchange for unquestioning loyalty.” Accordingly, individualism encourages independence and autonomy; whereas collectivism favours interdependence and loyalty to the group. In the present study, the loss of collectivism is a theme that was strongly debated amongst the participants. Although the Ayt Merghad culture exhibits elements of both individualism and collectivism, the participants Antrocom Online Journal of Anthropology 2014, vol. 10. n. 1 – ISSN 1973 – 2880 6 F. Gaddar– Modernization and Individualism in the Ayt Merghad Community made it clear that there is a tendency towards gradual individualistic attitudes in the community. This individualistic orientation has brought about various changes in the cultural values of the Ayt Merghad community, especially among the young generation. Values of mutual help and sacrifice for the benefits of the community, which were once defining features of the community, have begun to erode. These values are gradually being lost and replaced by more individualistic features. New ideals of personal achievement and success are adopted. Undoubtedly, education has contributed to the spread of the principles of achievement and competition among the young generation. Today, members of the Ayt Merghad community pay utmost effort in order to achieve high levels of education. This indicates that individual competition with the others and ambition, which are at the core of the individualistic view of life, has made their way right into the Ayt Merghad community. The following quote reported by a 40-year-old man summarizes some general features of the Ayt Merghad community which can serve as indicators of their individualistic tendency. “aɣuln mәddәn uwint bәzzaf g lhmum nsәn. uwint bәzzaf g ttәrbija d tɣuri n warraw nsәn. aɣuln awd mәddәn uwwint g lxdami nsәn. ur jad sulan mәddәn.” “People have become more concerned with their personal matters. They focus more on educating their children and following their studies. Also people are preoccupied with their jobs. They are all the time busy.” With the modernization and urbanization processes, the Ayt Merghad community is moving towards a more individualistic side of the collectivism-individualism continuum. The family structure provides a concrete example of this tendency. The traditional extended family is being replaced by nuclear units with parents and their children. The Ayt Merghad community was characterized by the coexistence of several generations within the
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