Tag / sociology

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by daviddawson462742281

Do Anthropologists Think They can Learn Anything From Theologians?

A Place for Conservative Anthropology?

Perhaps current discussions in the field of sociology can speak to our topic. At a recent seminar of the Heterodox Academy, statistical evidence was presented that most applicants for sociology degrees are coming from an activist motivation, also known as action research (Heterodox Academy, 2026, https://youtu.be/fYCkOI6i7DE?si=DngoFqm9WzVq7kJz). According to the panel, inequality has become the dominant theme in sociological research. This situation is critiqued as producing research that merely denounces equality rather than seeking to contribute new data. In this way, equality has substituted all other paradigms of virtue. Against this predominant current, the Heterodox Academy seminar argued for the need for conservative sociology. For many conservatives, there is no place for their worldview in sociology because the field is completely dominated by activism targeting inequality. However, others have argued for a conservative sociology that prioritizes science over advocacy. 

Can Theology Teach Anthropologists How to Critique Culture?

Anthropologist Joel Robbins (2023, https://youtu.be/PtCGXLuIOAQ?si=FRfJMVWfCo_FNKLo) addressed how the issue of making judgements across cultures has become increasingly fraught among anthropologists. Robbins investigated what can be learned from religions about this. Cultural relativism (CR) is seen as the greatest contribution of anthropology to the academy and human thought in general; CR aims to suspend judgement to understand how people make sense of things, a form of asceticism that anthropologists increasingly don’t want to adopt. Robbins argued that whereas anthropologists used to look for the integrity of societies, now they look for what goes wrong in them. Anthropologists today often blame some source from outside or above that oppresses and exploits. 

Robbins posited that anthropologists could learn from theologians because they are trained in the opposite to CR: how to make judgements; (2018, https://youtu.be/EISLdAcnUgc?si=oXCA1dN4eT65IpCA). Robbins draws upon the work of Ortner (2006) who predicted a shift in anthropology from symbolic to practices in the 70s and 80s. In the 2010s, Ortner said that the focus of anthropology had become dealing with the neo-liberal world order. He described this as an “anthropology of darkness” focused on protest, activism, and liberation. In opposition to this trend, Ornter described the emergence of a counter movement which he described as the anthropology of the good. Drawing upon Ortner, Robbins proposed an anthropology of virtue which is better equipped to give us an approach to dealing with cultural differences. This approach is also more helpful for dealing with the problems of societies and cultures than an anthropology of darkness. Robbins describes cultural values as what is ethically desirable. Values are “the way things end up” – the societal norms that repeatedly manifest themselves in situations. In contrast to this, moral non-cognitivists say that values are simple people saying “yeah” or “boo” about things they arbitrarily approve or disapprove of. 

In this text, I have briefly addressed some discussions in anthropology and how theology can possibly contribute to them. Historically, anthropologists and missionaries were generally at odds with each other ideologically. However, the field of missions studies has increasingly recognized its situation in relation to the other social sciences (Kim et al., 2022). Missiologists increasingly study alongside sociologists and anthropologists in major universities. Coming decades will demonstrate whether such partnership and dialogue can bear fruit according to the perspectives of all parties involved. 

References

Heterodox Academy, 2026, https://youtu.be/fYCkOI6i7DE?si=DngoFqm9WzVq7kJz

Kim, K., Jørgensen, K., & Climenhaga, A. F. (Eds.). (2022). The Oxford handbook of mission studies. (First edition.). Oxford University Press. Biola Library Catalog (Upper Level BV2090 .O94 2022).

Ortner, S. B. (2006). Anthropology and social theory: Culture, power, and the acting subject / Sherry B. Ortner. Duke University Press. Biola Library ebooks (bio.on1097302820). https://research.ebsco.com/plink/832a8768-1e6c-3d6d-be47-b3080d7a5f5d

Robbins, Joel (2018, https://youtu.be/EISLdAcnUgc?si=oXCA1dN4eT65IpCA

Robbins, Joel (2023). https://youtu.be/PtCGXLuIOAQ?si=FRfJMVWfCo_FNKLo

by daviddawson462742281

The Need for Qualitative Missions Research

I was privileged to receive my foundational missionary and theological training in the U.S. in the 1990s. My initial training was in Youth With a Mission, and then I went to study at Life Pacific Bible College, although I didn’t complete my studies there. I also sat under the teaching ministry of several excellent churches of the denominations Foursquare, Assemblies of God, and Calvary Chapel. In these contexts, I received much invaluable head and heart knowledge, mostly of Biblical studies, Theology, and church / missions history. While thankful for this, looking back today I perceive a lack of social science training in the models of ministry education I received. 

The social sciences include fields such as sociology, psychology, anthropology, economics, and political science. As a missionary today, I feel that someone with this vocation could do very well to invest in these fields as a core aspect of cross-cultural Christian service. Interestingly, both the fields of anthropology and missiology have suffered in recent decades due to questions of the validity of outsider interference in indigenous cultures. Missionaries have consistently argued that such outsider interference in indigenous societies is inevitable. Whether religiously motivated or not, social science professionals can help the interaction of cultures to produce fruitful results versus harmful ones. 

When most people think of research, they likely conceptualize quantitative research, which is focused on measuring quantifiable data such as numbers, statistics, and trends. Much vital quantitative research has been done by missionaries to determine areas of need and opportunity in contexts varying from urban metropolises to remote villages. Less understood by most is qualitative research, which seeks to understand meaning through translation, description, and thematic analysis (Tisdell et al., 2025, p. 19). In quantitative research the primary instruments are non-human technological ones that do mathematical and statistical analysis. But in qualitative research the researcher is the primary instrument. The qualitative researcher’s focus is on participants of some social phenomena (Tisdell et al., p. 20-21). The goal is to discover and understand a human cultural phenomenon such as experiences and perspectives (Ellis & Hart, 2023, p. 1760). Qualitative research seeks to produce detailed descriptions of individuals’ experiences as they understand them, articulated in their own words (Chenail et al., 2011; Daniel 2019). 

In the 2010’s I began doing social science research in Brazil using data from local academic journals and scholarly publications. This was when I was doing my MA in Global Leadership at Fuller Seminary. But my approach to research at that time still focused entirely on texts rather than interactions with real people. During my doctoral studies which began three years ago, I have developed a passion for qualitative research. As a missionary, I have access to so many people with important experiences and perspectives that could benefit the church and missions efforts. People are often wary of sharing their experiences in fear of being exposed or misinterpreted in harmful ways. Most anthropologists extended field work consists of several months to a few years. But missionaries can develop rapport with communities through decades of engagement. In this way, missionaries can gain access to data unavailable to secular sociologists and anthropologists. 

Description is not the only way qualitative research can be used, it can also aim to prove theory or to give voice to marginalized communities. Qualitative research can be used to promote justice and denounce inequality. We live in a time where many missions organizations face a crisis of purpose due to pluralism and cultural relativism. Engaging in the social sciences is a way that Christian doing cross-cultural service can make significant contributions. Missionaries can raise awareness of the needs of underserved communities by investigating their experiences and perspectives. In a time where missions work is seen as a holdover from Western colonial exploitation, qualitative research is a way for Christians to demonstrate our love and respect for human cultures. Just as Jesus’ incarnation demonstrates God’s open attitude towards human culture, of all people missionaries should have the greatest intercultural curiosity. And just as Scripture commands us to love the Lord with all our minds, surely there are those who will be called to contribute significantly to social science research. If a missions culture emerges that values such endeavors, perhaps we will see a generation arise such as that of Daniel. I pray that servants of God will show themselves to increasingly be of exceptional excellence in intercultural research. Would that this be done to the glory of the Creator from whom all cultural creativity and value flows. 

References

Chenail, R. J., Duffy, M., St. George, S., & Wulff, D. (2011). Facilitating coherence across

qualitative research papers. The Qualitative Report, 16(1), 263. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2011.1052

Daniel, B. K. (2019). Using the TACT framework to learn the principles of rigour in qualitative

research. Electronic Journal of Business Research Methods, 17(3), 118

Ellis, J. L., & Hart, D. L. (2023). Strengthening the Choice for a Generic Qualitative Research Design. The Qualitative Repor, 28(6), 1760

Tisdell, E.J., Merriam, S.B. & Stuckey-Peyrot, H.L. (2025). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation (5th ed.). Jossey-Bass. ISBN: 978-1394266456.