Expanding Anthropology

Anthropology professor emeritus Doug Caulkins co-edited A Companion to Organizational Anthropology (Wiley-Blackwell, 2012), with University of North Texas professor Ann Jordan. It is the first comprehensive textbook exploring anthropological studies of complex organizations, heralding a coming-of-age for the subdiscipline. 

The book boasts 38 contributing international scholars and highlights organizations as diverse as government agencies, nonprofits, and transnational corporations, examining how these organizations interact to shape market, societal, and global trends. 

“I’ve been studying organizational life since my dissertation research on voluntary or nonprofit organizations and community social capital in Norway,” says Caulkins, whose recent work has included sustainability issues in organizations, as well as heritage organizations in post-conflict Northern Ireland. 

In addition to editing, Caulkins co-authored three chapters: “Expanding the Field of Organizational Anthropology for the 21st Century,” “Entrepreneur-ship Studies,” and “Sustaining Social Sector Organizations.” The book also features other Grinnell connections, including chapters by Davydd Greenwood ’64 and associate anthropology professor  J. Montgomery Roper.