Anthropology Theories

• Marxism Theory: Consists of people at the top of the hierachy in business only giving a small percentage of the money earned to their workers. All behaviour in the world is explained by concept of POWER, only a few people in the world control those of wealth and political power, they also control world's economy. Main motive= maximising profit, rest of the world exploited. Our sole function in life is to work for the profits of other people
• Actor Network Theory: There is a complex network of interrelating people, ideas, concepts and technology. The theory focuses on the increasing impact of technology as an important 'actor' in the 'network'. ANT doesnt really explain why things happen, but is more of a way to 'describe' relationships. Useful way of looking at the world as it assumes that social forces do not exist. CYBORG TECHNOLOGY where technology has become or is an extension of the self- mobile phones
• Feminism Theory: Seeks to deconstruct traditional notions of gender shapes social, economic, and political relationships. It also seeks to explore issues of power and inequality, and to challenge the idea that women are passive or subordinate in society
• Nancy Sheper Hughs argues that there are 4 types of violence which play off one another: Political violence, Structural violence, Symbolic violence, and Everyday violence.
• Political violence is a group of people being continuously excluded from political power, often seen in ethnic minorities, young people, and women around the world such as the Middle East and people from other countries.
• Structural violence is when law enforcement and lack of educational and economic opportunities keep a group in check, often seen in black people in the US who have no political representation, healthcare, or education.
• Symbolic violence is when a group justifies to itself the treatment they receive from others, often seen in how women in Iran internalize suffering and black people in the US blame themselves for not getting the right education and healthcare.
• Everyday violence includes getting hurt at work, mental illness, or physical violence from other groups, often seen in being harassed on the streets.
• Structural Functionalism: Each part of society has a specific function that contributes to the overall stability and functioning of the system as a whole
• Biopsychological Functionalism: It views culture and cultural institutions as evolving to fulfill basic human needs like food, shelter, reproduction, raising children, etc. It sees culture as an adaptive mechanism for human survival. It incorporates research from areas like biology, psychology, and physiology to understand how human behaviors, beliefs, and customs serve individual and group survival needs.