Culture and Personality

CULTURE AND PERSONALITY

ANT and SOC 4320

MMS 318 710-4433

This is a seminar-like course that strives to understand the philosophical, moral and scientific implications of cross cultural research on the mind, the psyche, personality and personality formation and the emotions. We will investigate how culture, personality, and identity are related.

PART I THE CLASSICS- Psychological Anthropology

1- Culture and Personality Studies:

The self, culture, cultural and biological determinism, pioneer thinkers,

Configurationism

2- Classical Psychological Anthropology (findings and failures)

PART II POSTCLASSIC ECLECTICISM

3- Issues of meaning and mind/culture interface: interpretive, structuralist, cognitive, post modern, and critical anthropology

4- Culture and Identity: Emotions, charisma, cross cultural psychiatry, love, thematic interpretations of cultures and selves, ethnicity, dialectics of culture and personality in America.

PART III AGENT CENTERED ANALYSIS

5- The person-centered ethnography: Pros and cons, findings and examples

Books to purchase

Charles Lindholm Culture and Identity

Ruth Benedict Patterns of Culture

Paul Radin Crashing Thunder- The Autobiography of a Winnebago Indian

Joan Barker Danger, Duty and Disillusion

Work and Grading

-An exam on each of the 5 units 50

-Written and oral Report on the ideas of an important

psychological anthropologist/culture& personality theorist 10

(See the appended list)

-Research Project (15 page term paper that develops your answer to the question:

How are culture and personality related?

Citing research used in constructing your argument 40

Bonus for class participation 0-3