Ethics and Anthropology - by Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban (Paperback)

About the Book

Ethics and Anthropology: Ideas and Practice is the first comprehensive and up-to-date book embracing issues and dilemmas faced by anthropologists in the discipline's four fields.

Book Synopsis

Ethics and Anthropologycomprehensively embraces issues and dilemmas faced in all four of the discipline's fields. Not merely a subject to be considered when seeking the approval of institutional review boards, ethics is anthropology.

Fluehr-Lobban explores the critical application of core ethical principles--do no harm, apply informed consent in all stages of research, practice transparency, collaborate--from the initial stages of crafting a proposal and executing research through writing and publication of findings. She provides a frank, up-to-date consideration of best practices and trends andincorporates recommendations from the most recent AAA Code of Ethics. To help students understand the art of ethics in principle and in practice, she draws on anthropological history and discourse as well as cross-cultural and interdisciplinary examples; questions for discussion round out each chapter.

Review Quotes

Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban has been in the forefront of anthropological ethics for a long time, and she summarizes what she has written and learned along the way in her new book. As she states in her introduction, there are several 'guiding principles' of any practicable standards of ethics in anthropology. . . . After surveying ethical practices and statements from other disciplines like psychology, sociology, and political science, much of the book consists of deeper explorations of some of these core principles. ... It is important, indeed essential, to have these kinds of discussions about ethics and methods.

Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban has for several decades been in the promotion of anthropological ethics, on which she has published widely. Her latest book on this theme, Ethics and Anthropology, in which she argues that ethics IS anthropology, does not disappoint. She has the capacity to make clear the most complex ideas and all practicing anthropologists, whether teachers, students or others, will find this book invaluable, both theoretically and practically.

Ethics and Anthropology is a must-read for all students of anthropology, whether they are learning about the discipline for the first time or working as seasoned practitioners. As Fluehr-Lobban points out, ethical considerations are no longer background, taken-for-granted aspects of anthropological work; ethics are now at the core of anthropological practice across multiple fields and domains. Doing anthropology today thus requires a deep understanding of how anthropology and ethics work in concert in both theory and practice. Drawing from a four-field approach and providing practical examples throughout, Fluehr-Lobban offers a roadmap for engagement that is both accessible and inspiring. It's an invaluable work.

Ethics and Anthropology is the leading work on ethics in Anthropology while also informing other disciplines and endeavors that entail fieldwork and practice globally. The author has thoroughly and lucidly researched work and issues since the beginnings of anthropological fieldwork to current controversies. She cogently tackles debates, offering informed analysis while not pulling punches. Her own impressive fieldwork and practice grounds analysis. Students, professionals, and informed commentators will learn much from this book.

About the Author

Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban is professor emerita of anthropology, Rhode Island College; adjunct professor, Doctoral Program in Education, University of Rhode Island/Rhode Island College; and adjunct professor of African Studies, U.S. Naval War College. In her long career, she has written and edited numerous books and articles, particularly on ethics in anthropology, Islamic societies, and Sudan.