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Growing concerns about anthropology's impact in both academia and the broader social arena have led to calls for more "public" and more relevant anthropology. In this article, we expand on these exhortations, by calling for systematic joining of critical social theory with application and pragmatic engagement with contemporary problems. We argue for the repositioning of applied anthropology as a vital component of the broader discipline and suggest that it should serve as a framework for constructing a more engaged anthropology. In revisiting disciplinary history and critiques of applied anthropology, we demonstrate the central role that application has played throughout anthropology's evolution, address common misconceptions that serve as barriers to disciplinary integration, examine the role of advocacy in relation to greater engagement as well as the relationship of theory to practice, and conclude with an assessment of the diverse work that is subsumed under the inclusive rubric of "anthropology in use."
[Keywords: applied anthropology, engagement, history of anthropology, anthropological practice, advocacy]
OVER THE PAST DECADE, there has been increasing awareness within anthropology in general about the need for a more engaged role in both academia and the public arena, as well as calls for greater relevance with regard to addressing social problems and the structures that produce and maintain them. Much of this discussion has taken place within the academic milieu and has focused on new approaches (such as public anthropology) and other ways in which anthropologists can expand the impact of their ideas and connect with broader audiences (Basch et al. 1999; Borofsky 2000; Forman 1995).
A sizeable number of anthropologists have been turning their gaze toward pressing social issues. But writing with passion for a largely academic audience is not nearly enough. As James Peacock notes, "If the discipline is to gain recognition and a valuable identity, it must accomplish things; it must be active beyond its analytical strategy. Pragmatism and searching critique need not be mutually exclusive" (1997:12). We expand on this exhortation, by calling for a systematic joining of critical social theory with application and for pragmatic engagement with the contemporary problems of our social and physical worlds.
In this article, we argue for the repositioning of applied anthropology, by suggesting that it serve as one of the frameworks for...