Interpretive anthropology treats ethnography as reading the layered meanings that participants build and negotiate. Critics question how far its claims reach, and how firmly its central distinction between thin and thick description follows from the philosophy that inspired it remains disputed.
- Entry typeKey concept
- Category of its source unitResearch & Analysis Methods
- DomainAcross Cultures
What these mean
Editorial orientation · Entry type
Key concept
Key concepts are the working vocabulary of the field: the terms that the models and tools rely on and that a decision about communication has to use precisely. Each entry defines the term and sends you to the brief or the self-guided audit where it is put to work.
Editorial orientation · Category
Research & Analysis Methods
Establishes procedures for collecting, coding, comparing or interpreting information for inquiry or analysis. Its contribution is a defensible route from observations or materials to an account, finding or interpretation.