Comments on: What is the Role of the Anthropologist? http://www.weatherpattern.com/2008/10/what-is-the-role-of-the-anthropologist/ a blog on design / culture / telecom / networks / work / life / online-offline / new york Mon, 06 Sep 2010 16:21:29 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 hourly 1 By: Ray http://www.weatherpattern.com/2008/10/what-is-the-role-of-the-anthropologist/comment-page-1/#comment-470 Ray Wed, 29 Oct 2008 17:19:18 +0000 http://www.weatherpattern.com/?p=407#comment-470 Frank: On a related note, I think the challenge is how to determine the potential of how "big" a trend is, and identifying a fad from a paradigm shift... the earlier one can do that, the better. I think the larger array of tools from anthropology to behavioral economics can help. I'm reading McCracken's Flock and Flow, which came into the mail yesterday and looks like it takes a closer look at predicting versus explaining after the fact. Frank: On a related note, I think the challenge is how to determine the potential of how “big” a trend is, and identifying a fad from a paradigm shift… the earlier one can do that, the better. I think the larger array of tools from anthropology to behavioral economics can help. I’m reading McCracken’s Flock and Flow, which came into the mail yesterday and looks like it takes a closer look at predicting versus explaining after the fact.

]]> By: Frank http://www.weatherpattern.com/2008/10/what-is-the-role-of-the-anthropologist/comment-page-1/#comment-468 Frank Tue, 28 Oct 2008 19:08:41 +0000 http://www.weatherpattern.com/?p=407#comment-468 I often find it helpful to distinguish between cultural modes of explation and more individualistic, "rational choice" models. Individualist explanation can account for lots of the spending decisions we make. But when something as ineffable and abstract as "brand value" has to be explained, group dynamics and internalized norms strike me as much better explanations than simple individual rational calculation. The anthropologist sees the whole and sees how it affects individuals; the economist sees the individuals and tries to predict how their mutual interaction and individual pursuit of self-interest affects the whole. Fortunately, behavioral economists like Dan Ariely are exposing just how little we tend to think when we make "economic" decisions. Rather, spending patterns are driven much more by what our peers have, by what cultural norms dictate (such as: a "serious" woman in the fashion industry must have a $500 bag or some vintage item that playfully and obliquely comments on such a bag). When you get right down to it, we have very few needs dictated by biology. As Veblen realized, much of buying comes down to figuring out a way to play a game of "keeping up appearances." But as globalization pressures US and European and Japanese consumption into line with Chinese/Indian levels, it will be interesting to see how long that game can be played. All hail recessionista!: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/26/fashion/26words.html I often find it helpful to distinguish between cultural modes of explation and more individualistic, “rational choice” models. Individualist explanation can account for lots of the spending decisions we make. But when something as ineffable and abstract as “brand value” has to be explained, group dynamics and internalized norms strike me as much better explanations than simple individual rational calculation.

The anthropologist sees the whole and sees how it affects individuals; the economist sees the individuals and tries to predict how their mutual interaction and individual pursuit of self-interest affects the whole.

Fortunately, behavioral economists like Dan Ariely are exposing just how little we tend to think when we make “economic” decisions. Rather, spending patterns are driven much more by what our peers have, by what cultural norms dictate (such as: a “serious” woman in the fashion industry must have a $500 bag or some vintage item that playfully and obliquely comments on such a bag). When you get right down to it, we have very few needs dictated by biology. As Veblen realized, much of buying comes down to figuring out a way to play a game of “keeping up appearances.” But as globalization pressures US and European and Japanese consumption into line with Chinese/Indian levels, it will be interesting to see how long that game can be played. All hail recessionista!:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/26/fashion/26words.html

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