[Sigia-l] Microsoft, the Colonialist?

[Dave]

David, I think you are not all that knowledgeable about anthropology.
Urban anthropology has been around for decades, and as I said so has
applied anthropology. The differentiation you are making, is only a
narrow view of anthropology.

Anthropology is the study of the cultural side of humanity, simple.
It's methods are based in observation by attempting to obtain a
balance between the emic and etic perspectives of insider and
outsider. A balance that po-mo anthropology has learned cannot really
exist.

Anthropology is not the Boaz and Kroeber and even Meade of the early
part of the previous century anymore.

-- dave

On 6/13/05, david broschinsky <daveb at startide.net> wrote:
> No - I think this is the opposite of Contextual inquiry.
> 
> With Contextual inquiry, the practioner goes in with the understanding
> that they are there to learn "as an apprentice".
> 
> An anthropologist comes to the scene with a completely different set of
> assumptions it seems to me.  How many anthropologists do you know that
> go study more advanced civlizations?  They are they to learn, but there
> is certainly the understanding from their point of view that they are
> more advanced.  I think this makes it much more difficult to understand
> exactly what the user is trying to accomplish.
> 
> Granted both are taking notes, but I think it's a world of difference in
> attitude.
> 
> daveb
> 
> Dave wrote:
> > Ziya,
> >
> > Isn't this just Contextual Inquiry? Many behavior scientists have been
> > doing "applied anthropology" the term used while I was an anthro-major
> > in Uni, for decades. Examples of its use have been case studies all
> > along.
> >
> > Not sure what you mean by "is this a good thing?"
> >
> > Every organization in the capitalist system find methods to gain
> > intelligence about those whom they seek to exploit, so why is this any
> > different than a focus group, or a goa-directed design study, etc?
> >
> > One really good example of this type of work is done by Steve Portigal
> > who has been observing the masses of possible consumers and helping
> > organizations better fit their products and strategy to their reality,
> > for years.
> >
> > -- dave
> >
> > On 6/13/05, Listera <listera at rcn.com> wrote:
> >
> >>To better understand the software needs of entrepreneurs, Microsoft has been
> >>undertaking detailed field studies of small firms all over the U.S. Its
> >>executives refer to this sort of qualitative research as "anthropology," a
> >>term that has become a popular buzzword at the company in recent years.
> >>
> >>FORTUNE Cover Story
> >>Getting to Know You
> >><http://www.fortune.com/fortune/smallbusiness/technology/articles/1,15114,10
> >>62892,00.htmlZ>
> >>
> >>In addition to the code jockeys and marketing mavens who dominate the upper
> >>reaches of the corporate hierarchy, Microsoft employs numerous social
> >>scientists, including two credentialed anthropologists, to work on projects
> >>such as the development of Office SBA. Their fieldwork is far removed from
> >>the popular perception of the anthropologist as lantern-jawed adventurer in
> >>baggy shorts and pith helmet, canoeing up the Amazon in search of the
> >>proverbial lost tribe. But there is a certain correspondence between
> >>Microsoft's research agenda and the work of those old-time anthropologists,
> >>many of whom were funded by colonial governments that needed to understand
> >>their native subjects in order to rule them more effectively. The modern
> >>version of this knowledge-power dynamic is Microsoft, a multinational
> >>technology colossus that hires anthropologists who study the natives in
> >>order to sell them more software.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>Is this a good thing?
> >>
> >>Ziya
> >>Nullius in Verba
> >>
> >>
> >>------------
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> >>
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> >
> >
> 


-- 
David Heller
E: dheller (at) gmail (dot) com
W: www (dot) synapticburn (dot) com