G. LUTHEROVÁ, Soňa - HLINČÍKOVÁ, Miroslava (Eds.): Beyond the Borders of Science? Applied Anthropology in Society. Bratislava: Veda, 2016. 167 pp. ISBN 978-80-224-1543-9.
Within public discourse in Slovakia, the meaning and (un)usefulness of social sciences is a very current topic. To the wider public, the world of science may seem strange and incomprehensible, almost as if it existed for its own sake. Hence, social scientists are facing a singular challenge: how to use their acquired knowledge and skills beyond the doors of academia?
Social anthropology and ethnology are social scientific disciplines that focus on people and culture of everyday life. They study people’s life in various perspectives, such as in terms of notions, norms, ideals, identities and relations of individuals and social groups. First and foremost, they analyze what makes humans human. This vocation suggests an interest of anthropologists into current social problems, challenges and tensions. Therefore, the themes of anthropological and ethnological research include the development of urban and rural environment, minorities and migrants as well as communication between different social groups or cultures.
The publication Beyond the Borders of Science? Applied Anthropology in Society presents a selection of essential themes and approaches of applied anthropology.
In individual chapters, authors reflect on the way we can apply particular anthropological and ethnological knowledge, skills and perspectives in social practice. They perceive this through their own academic work, describing their own dilemmas and proposing solutions rising from their personal experience. In doing so, they try to give an answer to the question proposed in the title of this book: does the field of applied anthropology transcend the borders of science, or does it only broaden them?
Soňa G. Lutherová
Miroslava Hlinčíková (Editors)
„The book is definitely a significant addition to a discussion, that is still barely developed in Slovakia.”
Barbara Lášticová
“The readers interested in applied anthropology will get deeper into the problematics, they will acquire a perspective on practice, various research areas and questions, that the researchers deal with.”
Eva Šipöczová
DOI: https://doi.org/10.31577/2016.9788022415439
