Angela K. VandenBroek, PhD Anthropologist of Innovation (and all the hype that entails)

In this course students examine the nature of cultural variation of populations in the present and recent past. Its subjects include social, political, economic, and ideological aspects of human cultures.

This course explores the nature of innovation under late capitalism via entrepreneurship. Drawing on the anthropology of business, design, organizations, economics and technology, students will review with a critical lens how people strive for better futures and what anthropology can do to improve these efforts.

This course provides instruction on qualitative research methods through lectures and hands-on activities, including designing qualitative research projects, collecting and analyzing qualitative data, and presenting qualitative results.

This course explores the intersection of science, technology, and organizations through foundational theories in science and technology studies (STS) and organizational anthropology. Students will examine concepts like objectivity, facts, authority, policy, infrastructure, and organizational power. The course highlights feminist STS perspectives to investigate how culture and power influence knowledge, technology, and organizations. By understanding these relationships, students will learn to apply and advocate for anthropology in multidisciplinary teams and organizations, extending their expertise beyond academic settings.

This course will begin by exploring the anthropology of design, including the practices, implications, and expansion of design under contemporary capitalism. Students will then use this knowledge to examine the growing field of design anthropology and learn how anthropologists provide actionable insights and research for design work today.

Anthropologists face a variety of ethical issues as they engage in research with human and animal subjects. In this course, students will focus on many topics including review boards (IRB, IACUC), collaboration with human groups, bioethics, advocacy and activism, repatriation, intellectual property and publication, cultural heritage preservation, and workplace ethics.