How Cultures Are Studied

This program provides a case study of how anthropologists conduct field surveys of other cultures. The program contains the case study of Napoleon Chagnon, an anthropologist who carried out an extensive study of the Yanamamo Indians of Venezuela. Over a period of several years, Dr. Chagnon spent several months living with the Yanamamo in order to obtain a complete ethnographic understanding of their culture. He explains the meaning of many anthropological terms, and the methods and techniques he used to conduct his studies, while stressing that in order to conduct a successful field study, an anthropologist must shed his or her cultural prejudices.