Suchergebnisse

Abstract The Global Survey of Anthropological Practice (GSAP), the first of its kind, was undertaken by the World Council of Anthropological Associations (WCAA) to provide insights about anthropology as a transnational profession, the ongoing relevance of the discipline in addressing global problems, issues in employment and gender equity, and the range of anthropological practice and expertise. Respondents to the survey were living in 113 different countries. This article summarizes some of the GSAP's most general global findings. The GSAP data suggest that within the discipline of anthropology, woman-identified practitioners predominate, except in archaeology and linguistics; yet, women were more likely to report being under-employed and/or not fairly compensated for their work. Universities were the largest employers of anthropologists, but public policy work and public engagement featured centrally in many respondents' work. The social and cultural anthropology subdisciplines appear to be the most widely practiced the world over, but many respondents also engaged in applied anthropology. However, social media platforms, which might allow anthropologists to reach broader publics, were under-utilized by respondents, who were more likely to publish in closed, internal, and disciplinary specific forums. The GSAP illustrated the global mobility of respondents, including for higher education (and the data on this reflected the hegemony of North Atlantic centers of higher education); yet, many anthropologists around the world have expertise and undertake research in their home countries. Finally, the GSAP found that respondents published their work predominantly in English, although not exclusively, and documented a diversity of languages in which anthropologists publish.

Abstract This brief article is intended to complement "The WCAA Global Survey of Anthropological Practice (2014-2018): Reported Findings" in this issue of ViBrAnt. The article details the internal processes within the World Council of Anthropological Associations through which the Global Survey of Anthropological Practice (GSAP) was initiated and developed. It also discusses the issues and challenges the research team faced, as well as how it endeavored to address them, in carrying out a global survey of anthropologists. The principal aim of the GSAP was to create a knowledge base about the professional practice of anthropologists globally that could be used by the World Council of Anthropological Associations (WCAA) and its member associations to help promote the value and relevance of the discipline. With its fifty-odd member associations from all continents, the WCAA was uniquely positioned to gather these data, and the GSAP process effectively remade this network of associations into a large-scale research consortium. The development and intent of the survey, the particular actors involved and actions taken in its development, are thus critical to its fruition, as well as its shortcomings. The historical process itself contains valuable insights for any future endeavors to survey practitioners of anthropology on a global scale.