About Social Anthropology
Social Anthropology is concerned with the social organisation and culture of the various societies of human kind and the individual experience of living in them. By focusing on the similarities and differences between these societies it aims to give interpretations and explanations of the vast numbers of customs and institutions which influence human social behaviour. The anthropologist's special skills are in the study of social relations at the level of the local community. Through prolonged residence in such communities they come to an understanding of social life from the participants' perspective. In western society - no less than in other societies - people live and participate in communities - in neighbourhoods and villages, and in schools, universities and factories. These too have been the focus of recent social anthropological studies.
In recent years, social anthropologists have become increasingly interested in western society, but traditionally they have concentrated their studies on societies in other parts of the world, including remoter parts such as the (Inuit) Eskimos of the Arctic, or the Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert. Through the study of these other cultures, anthropologists have gained profound insights into the general nature of human society and have engaged in debates about human nature at a more abstract level. As part of their research most professional anthropologists have spent at least two years living among such peoples. This method allows the anthropologist to gain an intimate understanding of the life-styles, languages and cultural practices of other people. It also allows them to reflect comparatively, not only on other people's cultures, but on our own customs and practices too.
The social anthropologist's comparative knowledge of social practices can have an immense practical relevance in the contemporary world. Anthropologists can show that the apparently strange, exotic, customs of cultures different from our own are perfectly rational given the environment, technology and knowledge of the societies concerned. Through making sense of such customs, anthropologists play a part in the endeavour to eliminate racial and cultural prejudice, including prejudice in Great Britain. In the field of economic development, and in the administration of relief in the wake of natural and man-made disasters, the anthropologist's expertise is also important. The policies of government and international agencies concerned with these problems must take account of the particular customs and beliefs of the people to whom aid is being given; the anthropologist can supply this knowledge.