Anthropology as a Profession: Qualitative Data’s Role in a Quantitative World - McLaughlin

Anthropology as a Profession: Qualitative Data’s Role in a Quantitative World 

 

CHAIR: NEWTON, Kevin (U Memphis) 

 

NEWTON, Kevin (U Memphis) Quasi-Qualitative Methods Lead to Low-Hanging Fruit: A Case Study of a Consultancy Firm’s Approach to Anthropology SCHILL, Elizabeth (Partnership for Public Serv) Do Not Underestimate the Power of Qualitative Data: Lessons from Business and Government GEBERS, Jenessa (U Memphis) Amaadhi N’obulamu: How Diverse Approaches Benefit Water and Sanitation Research ROTH, Heather S., BRICKLE, Tyler, GONZALEZ, Stephen, and MCLAUGHLIN, Logan M. (UNT) Ethnography and Engineering: How Qualitative Methods Can Help Build the Car of the Future FABRI, Antonella (CAleidoscopio Ethnographic Rsch) The Ripple Effect of Voices in Qualitative Research 

 

DISCUSSANT: BRIODY, Elizabeth K. (Cultural Keys LLC)

 

NEWTON, Kevin (U Memphis) Anthropology as a Profession: Qualitative Data’s Role in a Quantitative World. The vision of the SfAA states “to promote public recognition of anthropology as a profession.” In a world where “data” is virtually synonymous with quantitative data, how should the work of anthropologists change to carry out this vision? A promising approach is to understand weaknesses in quantitative-only methods, and how qualitative data transforms the statistical outputs of regressions and analyses of variance. This session combines the experiences of professionals and students to highlight the benefits of combining quantitative and qualitative data in creative ways to solve problems, which may add substantiation to anthropology as a profession in today’s “data”-driven world.

 

Session took place in Pittsburgh, PA at the 75th Annual Meeting of the Society for Applied Anthropology in March 2015.