Primates, Fairness and Game of Ultimatum

"Until our study, the behavioral economics community assumed the Ultimatum Game could not be played with animals or that animals would choose only the most selfish option while playing. We've concluded that chimpanzees not only get very close to the human sense of fairness, but the animals may actually have exactly the same preferences as …

Anthropology, Culture and Personality

“Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else.” ― Margaret Mead Personality school of anthropology studies relation between culture and personality, it is also called psychological anthropology. This school believes that adult behaviour is culturally patterned. It gives importance to childhood experiences of a person in determining his personality as an adult. …

Ratan Tata and NELCO Crucible – Part 2

Girish Kuber is journalist who has written book on TATAs. The book written in Marathi has been translated in English by Vikrant Pande. The book has also published interview with Ratan Tata.In my earlier article I had written about how NELCO crucible played key role in making Ratan Tata a leader. The interview supports what …

Leveling Mechanism, !Kung, Harrison Bergeron

Juǀʼhoansi or !Kung people are found near Kalahari desert. This tribe shows great deal of equality between men and women. Women generally collect plant foods and water, while men hunt. However, these gender roles are not strict and people do all jobs as needed with little or no shame. For example while women generally take …

Gayatri Spivak, Lila Abu Lughod and Muslim Women

“What does freedom mean if we accept the fundamental premise that humans are social beings, raised in certain social and historical contexts and belonging to particular communities that shape their desires and understandings of the world?” ― Lila Abu-Lughod, Do Muslim Women Need Saving? Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak is Professor at Columbia University. She describes herself …

Susan Fiske, Ann Hopkins and Glass Ceiling

Many people have gendered expectations and they tend to see things that confirm those expectations… stereotyping creates a “double bind” for professional women who faced a conflict between socially approved notions of femininity and professional standards of competence. They were expected to display masculine qualities to be successful, yet if they did so, they would …

Gayatri Spivak, Antonio Gramsci and Voice of Subaltern

Philosophy of Praxis is…. the expression of subaltern classes who want to educate themselves in the art of government and who have an interest in knowing all truths, even the unpleasant ones, and in avoiding the impossible deceptions of the upper class, and even more their own.” -Antonio Gramsci Gayatri Spivak a Marxist Feminist is …