From the mid-1930s to the early 1990s, major journals in sociocultural anthropology, archaeology, political science, geography, and sociology all saw increases in the proportion of articles with tables or figures analyzing empirical data. This growth in numerical evidence might be attributed in part to efforts by many scholars to make their disciplines less descriptive and more of a social science. In all these fields, some researchers resisted, contending that qualitative approaches offer insights other than those offered by methods they regarded as overly positivist. The journals in these disciplines have followed divergent paths over time in the proportion of articles with quantitative analyses. This proportion has dropped sharply in sociocultural anthropology, but has remained high in archaeology, political science, geography, and sociology. These differences might suggest that most sociocultural anthropologists nowadays, in contrast to the majority of their counterparts in allied fields, do not regard themselves as social scientists.

Historians of anthropology have observed how the locations where sociocultural anthropologists conduct fieldwork have influenced their methods and theories. This paper provides information about (1) where sociocultural anthropologists publishing in selected well-known journals in recent years have been conducting fieldwork; and (2) how contemporary fieldwork locations resemble and differ from those in the past. The geographical distribution of fieldwork sites by world region prior to the mid-1950s differs considerably from that of more recent years. However, since 1960 the only significant changes have been increases in the proportions of field sites in Europe and the Middle East. In comparison with their populations, fieldwork sites in both the past and present greatly overrepresent some regions and countries and underrepresent other regions and countries. The result is a sampling problem that hinders attempts to make cross-cultural generalizations.

Previous articleNext article No AccessBook ReviewsPredatory Economies; The Sanema and the Socialist State in Contemporary Amazonia. Amy Penfield. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2023, 248 pp. $29.95, paper. ISBN 9781477327081.Michael ChibnikMichael ChibnikUniversity of Iowa Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmailPrint SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Journal of Anthropological Research Volume 79, Number 4Winter 2023Decolonization and the History of Americanist Anthropology Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/727059 Views: 5Total views on this site For permission to reuse, please contact [email protected].PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

From the mid-1930s to the early 1990s, major journals in sociocultural anthropology, archaeology, political science, geography, and sociology all saw increases in the proportion of articles with tables or figures analyzing empirical data. This growth in numerical evidence can plausibly be attributed in part to efforts by many scholars to make their disciplines less descriptive and more of a social science. After around 1970, the development of computer hardware and software greatly easing statistical analyses also encouraged authors to provide numerical evidence in support of their arguments. In all these fields, some researchers resisted these trends, contending that qualitative approaches offer insights other than those offered by methods they regarded as overly positivist.In recent years, the journals in these disciplines have followed divergent paths in the proportion of articles with quantitative analyses. This proportion has dropped sharply in sociocultural anthropology, but has remained high in archaeology, political science, geography, and sociology. These trends may affect the relative influence of different disciplines on the many policy makers who emphasize numerical evidence in their decision-making.

American EthnologistVolume 48, Issue 3 p. 327-328 Book Review Bolivia in the Age of Gas. Gustafson, Bret. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2020. 328 pp. MICHAEL CHIBNIK, Corresponding Author MICHAEL CHIBNIK michael-chibnik@uiowa.edu orcid.org/0000-0001-7856-3944 University of Iowa email: michael-chibnik@uiowa.eduSearch for more papers by this author MICHAEL CHIBNIK, Corresponding Author MICHAEL CHIBNIK michael-chibnik@uiowa.edu orcid.org/0000-0001-7856-3944 University of Iowa email: michael-chibnik@uiowa.eduSearch for more papers by this author First published: 23 July 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/amet.13025Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Volume48, Issue3August 2021Pages 327-328 RelatedInformation

American EthnologistVolume 47, Issue 3 p. 303-308 Ethnography at Its Edges Ethnography at its edges Boas, race and immigration: Then and now MICHAEL CHIBNIK, MICHAEL CHIBNIK University of IowaSearch for more papers by this author MICHAEL CHIBNIK, MICHAEL CHIBNIK University of IowaSearch for more papers by this author First published: 28 August 2020 https://doi.org/10.1111/amet.12915Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume47, Issue3August 2020Pages 303-308 RelatedInformation

Annals of Anthropological PracticeVolume 44, Issue 2 p. 208-212 Commentary Practical and Ethical Complications of Participatory Research Michael Chibnik, Michael Chibnik michael-chibnik@uiowa.edu Department of Anthropology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52245 USASearch for more papers by this author Michael Chibnik, Michael Chibnik michael-chibnik@uiowa.edu Department of Anthropology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52245 USASearch for more papers by this author First published: 15 December 2020 https://doi.org/10.1111/napa.12153Citations: 1Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume44, Issue2November 2020Pages 208-212 RelatedInformation

American AnthropologistVolume 121, Issue 1 p. 206-210 WORLD ANTHROPOLOGIES Publishing Translations Michael Chibnik, Michael Chibnik University of Iowa, USASearch for more papers by this author Michael Chibnik, Michael Chibnik University of Iowa, USASearch for more papers by this author First published: 03 February 2019 https://doi.org/10.1111/aman.13196Citations: 1Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume121, Issue1March 2019Pages 206-210 RelatedInformation

Economic AnthropologyVolume 6, Issue 1 p. 150-152 The Symposium Analyzing economic regeneration Michael Chibnik, Corresponding Author michael-chibnik@uiowa.edu Department of Anthropology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242–1322 USACorresponding author: Michael Chibnik; e-mail: michael-chibnik@uiowa.eduSearch for more papers by this author Michael Chibnik, Corresponding Author michael-chibnik@uiowa.edu Department of Anthropology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242–1322 USACorresponding author: Michael Chibnik; e-mail: michael-chibnik@uiowa.eduSearch for more papers by this author First published: 02 January 2019 https://doi.org/10.1002/sea2.12139Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume6, Issue1January 2019Pages 150-152 RelatedInformation

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American AnthropologistVolume 118, Issue 4 p. 723-725 FROM THE EDITOR Thanks Michael Chibnik, Michael Chibnik Editor-in-Chief amanthro@uiowa.edu Department of Anthropology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242-1322Search for more papers by this author Michael Chibnik, Michael Chibnik Editor-in-Chief amanthro@uiowa.edu Department of Anthropology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242-1322Search for more papers by this author First published: 18 September 2016 https://doi.org/10.1111/aman.12687Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume118, Issue4December 2016Pages 723-725 RelatedInformation