Answer:
The anthropological perspective is a way of viewing and understanding human societies, cultures, and behaviors from a holistic and comparative standpoint. Anthropology is a social science that seeks to study and comprehend human diversity, both within and across cultures, by employing various research methods, including participant observation, ethnography, interviews, and surveys. Here's how the anthropological perspective helps researchers better understand research participants and their own culture:
1.Cultural Relativism: Anthropology encourages cultural relativism, the notion that all cultural beliefs and practices should be understood within their own cultural context without judgment or bias. Researchers adopt this perspective to avoid ethnocentrism, which involves viewing one's own culture as superior and judging others by one's cultural standards. Cultural relativism helps researchers appreciate the cultural significance of behaviors, norms, and values within a specific context.
2.Participant Observation: Anthropologists often engage in participant observation, immersing themselves in the daily lives of the people they study. This allows researchers to gain firsthand experience of the culture and understand the nuances of behavior, social norms, and interactions that may not be evident through other research methods.
3.Emic and Etic Perspectives: Anthropologists use both emic (insider's perspective) and etic (outsider's perspective) approaches to understand a culture comprehensively. While striving to see the world through the eyes of the participants (emic), researchers also apply their external observations and analysis (etic) to provide a balanced understanding.
Overall, the anthropological perspective promotes cultural understanding, empathy, and a nuanced view of human societies. By adopting this perspective, researchers can develop a more profound appreciation of the complexities of human cultures, enhance their ability to relate to research participants, and make more accurate and culturally sensitive interpretations of their observations and findings.