Melford Spiro
Encyclopedia
Melford Elliot Spiro is an American cultural anthropologist specializing in psychological anthropology
. He is known for his work on the Westermarck effect
, and for his studies of the kibbutz
. He has conducted fieldwork among the Ojibwa
, on Ifaluk atoll in Micronesia
, in Israel
, and in Burma (now Myanmar). He was a significant figure in a series of debates over cultural relativism
and postmodern theory among American cultural anthropologists in the 1980s and early 1990s, in which he consistently argued for the importance of the comparative method and the appreciation of universal psychological processes, especially child development and unconscious drives. He is also trained as a lay psychoanalyst.
He began his undergraduate career at Northwestern University
in philosophy, but soon decided that the empirical and comparative methods of cultural anthropology provided a better approach to answering his questions about human nature. He received his B.A. in anthropology, working with Melville Herskovits, and continued on to graduate study at the University of Pennsylvania
with A. Irving Hallowell. He received his Ph.D. in 1950. He later taught at Harvard University
and was invited to found the Department of Anthropology at the University of California, San Diego
in La Jolla, California, in the early 1970s. He has been professor emeritus there since the 1990s. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (U.S.).
Psychological anthropology
Psychological anthropology is an interdisciplinary subfield of anthropology that studies the interaction of cultural and mental processes. The subfield tends to focus on ways in which humans' development and enculturation within a particular cultural group—with its own history, language, practices,...
. He is known for his work on the Westermarck effect
Westermarck effect
The Westermarck effect, or reverse sexual imprinting, is a hypothetical psychological effect through which people who live in close domestic proximity during the first few years of their lives become desensitized to later sexual attraction. This phenomenon was first hypothesized by Finnish...
, and for his studies of the kibbutz
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
. He has conducted fieldwork among the Ojibwa
Ojibwa
The Ojibwe or Chippewa are among the largest groups of Native Americans–First Nations north of Mexico. They are divided between Canada and the United States. In Canada, they are the third-largest population among First Nations, surpassed only by Cree and Inuit...
, on Ifaluk atoll in Micronesia
Micronesia
Micronesia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising thousands of small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It is distinct from Melanesia to the south, and Polynesia to the east. The Philippines lie to the west, and Indonesia to the southwest....
, in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, and in Burma (now Myanmar). He was a significant figure in a series of debates over cultural relativism
Cultural relativism
Cultural relativism is the principle that an individual human's beliefs and activities should be understood by others in terms of that individual's own culture. This principle was established as axiomatic in anthropological research by Franz Boas in the first few decades of the 20th century and...
and postmodern theory among American cultural anthropologists in the 1980s and early 1990s, in which he consistently argued for the importance of the comparative method and the appreciation of universal psychological processes, especially child development and unconscious drives. He is also trained as a lay psychoanalyst.
He began his undergraduate career at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in philosophy, but soon decided that the empirical and comparative methods of cultural anthropology provided a better approach to answering his questions about human nature. He received his B.A. in anthropology, working with Melville Herskovits, and continued on to graduate study at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
with A. Irving Hallowell. He received his Ph.D. in 1950. He later taught at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and was invited to found the Department of Anthropology at the University of California, San Diego
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
in La Jolla, California, in the early 1970s. He has been professor emeritus there since the 1990s. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (U.S.).
Select bibliography
- Spiro, Melford E.(1959) "Is the family universal?". Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, vol. 56, London, 1959
- Spiro, Melford E.(1965) "Children of the Kibbutz". New York: Schocken Books
- Spiro, Melford E. (1984) "Some Reflections on Cultural Determinism and Relativism with Special Reference to Emotion and Reason." pp. 323–346 in Culture Theory: essays on mind, self, and emotion, edited by R. A. Shweder and R. A. LeVine. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
- Spiro, Melford E. (1986) "Cultural Relativism and the Future of Anthropology." Cultural Anthropology: Vol. 1, No. 3, 259-286.
- Spiro, Melford E. (1987) "Religious systems as culturally constituted defense mechanisms." pp. 145–160 in Culture and human nature: theoretical papers of Melford E. Spiro, edited by B. Kilborne and L. L. Langness. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Spiro, Melford E. (1992) "On the strange and familiar in recent anthropological thought." pp. 53–70 in Anthropological Other or Burmese Brother? edited by M. E. Spiro. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Press.
- Spiro, Melford E. (1993) "Is the Western conception of the self "peculiar" within the context of the world cultures?" Ethos 21:107 - 153.
- Kilborne, Benjamin, and L.L. Langness, eds. (1987) Culture and human nature: Theoretical papers of Melford E. Spiro. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.