Obnavljanje etnografije u doba krize COVID-19

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a crisis of anthropological research has occurred that requires both methodological and epistemological considerations. The basic tool of anthropology is field research based on participant observation in situ and in close contact with people. However, during the pandemic, it has become almost impossible to conduct research in this way, as distancing and self-isolation are required. During the crisis, anthropologists have mostly stayed at home and have had to find new approaches to studying ways of life, including the use of digital methods. This article presents examples of such remote and technology- enabled ethnographic research. It illustrates the theoretical premises with the results from various research projects that have used remote ethnography, and complements them with the author’s reflections on anthropological work and daily life, written as an online blog during the COVID-19 pandemic, in which he outlined how he interacted with people via digital devices.Tijekom pandemije COVID-19 dogodila se paralelno i kriza antropoloških istraživanja koja je zahtijevala metodološka i epistemološka razmatranja. Osnovni alat antropologije je terensko istraživanje temeljeno na promatranju sudionika in situ te bliski kontakt s ljudima. Međutim, tijekom pandemije postalo je gotovo nemoguće provesti istraživanje na ovaj način, jer su socijalno distanciranje i samoizolacija postali pravila ponašanja. Tijekom krize antropolozi su uglavnom ostajali kod kuće i morali su kreirati nove istraživačke pristupe proučavanju svakodnevnog života, uključujući i upotrebu digitalnih metoda. Ovaj članak predstavlja primjere takvih daljinskih i tehnološki omogućenih etnografskih istraživanja. Ilustrira teorijske postavke prikazujući rezultate različitih istraživačkih projekata koji su koristili daljinsku etnografiju te ih nadopunjuje autorovim razmišljanjima o antropološkom radu i svakodnevnom životu. Naime, autor je vodio dnevnik pisan kao mrežni blog tijekom pandemije COVID-19, u kojem je izložio komunikaciju putem digitalnih uređaja

Antropološki vidiki postmoderne organizacije

Author of the article analyses anthropological and sociological aspects of organizations, adapted to contemporaneous individual, which should end the tradition of modern, bureaucratic or mechanistic organizations as conceived by 20th century management theoretics. Key factors of success in modern organizations were planning, hierarchy, centralized control and standardization, while in new, postmodern organizations these factors are speed, integration, inventiveness and flexibility. Design of postmodern organizations is presented on three cases. The first case shows Japanese companies, which changed linear work into more flexible form using systems kanban and nenko and management rotation. The second case is Wikipedia, a very stable and simultaneously very flexible on-line encyclopedia, which can be edited and revised by every user. The third case is Al Kaida, a terrorist organization with clearly defined goal and successfully based on flexible and undefined structureAvtor članka z antropološkega in filozofskega vidika analizira organizacije, ki so prilagojene sodobnemu posamezniku in ki dokončno zaključujejo tradicijo modernih, birokratskih oziroma mehanicističnih organizacij, kot so jih zasnovali teoretiki managementa v 20. stoletju. V modernih organizacijah so bili ključni dejavniki uspeha načrtovanje, hierarhija, centraliziran nadzor in standardizacija, medtem ko so v novih, postmodernih organizacijah ti dejavniki hitrost, integracija, inovativnost in fleksibilnost. Zasnova postmodernih organizacij je predstavljena na treh primerih. Najprej so opisana japonska podjetja, ki so že konec sedemdesetih let 20. stoletja linearen način dela začela spreminjati v bolj fleksibilno obliko s pomočjo sistemov kanban in ringi ter z rotacijo managementa. Drugi primer je spletna enciklopedija Wikipedija, ki jo lahko revidira in dopolnjuje vsak uporabnik in ki je hkrati stabilna ter izjemno fleksibilna. Tretji primer pa je teroristična mreža Al Kajda, ki je uspešna zaradi prilagodljive in nedefinirane strukture ter jasno začrtanega cilja. Za nastanek, obstoj in uspešno upravljanje takšnih postmodernih organizacij je najbolj pomemben prenos odgovornosti z managerjev na posameznika, kar sproži samoorganizacijo posameznih enot znotraj organizacije. Če je ta prenos izveden bolj premišljeno kot v socialističnem samoupravljanju, se posameznik začne ravnati po Kantovem kategoričnem imperativu, ki ga usmeri k maksimiranju njegovih koristi in tudi koristi celotne organizacije

Deconstructing divisions : cultural schismogeneses as sources of creativity in organizations

Drawing on Gregory Bateson’s theory of cultural schismogenesis, the authors analyse such processes within two organizations: the Birdwatching and Bird Study Association of Slovenia and VU University Amsterdam. Both cases illustrate internal cultural divisions typical for non-profit organizations whose goals go beyond optimizing financial profits and can thus be interpreted in various, sometimes conflicting, ways. The article demonstrates how organizational members, through continuous processes of creative deconstruction, transform organizations by simultaneously creating both schisms and coalitions. This shows that, although cultural divisions may at first glance seem destructive, they are at the same time sources of creativity that permit organizational renewal and growth

Anthropology as Necessary Unlearning. Examples from Camps, Courts, Schools and Businesses

U ovom radu istražujem poteškoće do kojih dolazi u pokušajima komunikacije preko kulturnih granica. Oslanjam se na svoj terenski rad u različitim sredinama u Istočnoj i Srednjoj Europi – u izbjegličkim kampovima, sudnicama, školama i poduzećima – u kojem sam zaključila da komunikacija najbolje funkcionira kada se uspostavi povjerenje, a korak koji je potreban da bi do toga došlo je na obje strane naučiti kako odučiti duboko ukorijenjene pretpostavke. Rad započinje raspravom o rasnim i etničkim stereotipima, u kojoj se oslanjam na niz uvida iz evolucijske psihologije i kognitivne znanosti. Zatim se okrećem mitovima o pamćenju te predlažem kako primijeniti najnovija otkrića specijaliziranih istraživanja pamćenja. U drugom dijelu rada problematiziram koncept "interkulturnosti", koji često legitimizira ideologiju "sukoba civilizacija". Predlažem da za uspostavu stvarne interkulturne komunikacije moramo napustiti modele doslovnog prevođenja i umjesto toga iskoristiti recentne antropološke uvide u načine funkcioniranja jezika, društvene konstrukcije značenja i postizanja zajedničkog razumijevanja. Pritom se nastavljam na radove lingvističkih i pravnih antropologa u ovom području te članak zaključujem razmišljanjima o povezanim temama kontradominantnosti i smijeha.This paper explores the problems which arise when people attempt to communicate across cultural boundaries. I draw on my fieldwork experience in various settings in Eastern and Central Europe – camps, courts, schools and businesses – where I found that communication works best when trust is established, and that the necessary step to fulfil this condition was to learn how to unlearn deeply rooted assumptions on both sides. The paper begins with a discussion of racial and ethnic stereotypes, drawing on a range of insights from evolutionary psychology and cognitive science. I then turn to memory myths, suggesting how to apply recent findings from specialized memory research. In the second part of the paper, I challenge the concept of "intercultural", which can all too easily legitimate the "clash of civilisations" ideology. In order to establish real intercultural communication, I suggest that we must abandon models of verbatim translation and instead take advantage of recent anthropological insights into how language works, how meanings are socially constructed and how shared understandings are achieved. In all this, I build on the work of linguistic and legal anthropologists who are already contributing to this endeavour and conclude with some meditations on the related themes of counter-dominance and laughter

Večparadigmska raziskava organizacijske kulture

The author presents multiple paradigm research into the organisational culture of a birdwatching association, where he conducted his ethnographic research. On top of the functionalist, interpretive, radical structuralist and radical humanist paradigms as presented by Gibson Burrell and Gareth Morgan, he applies the fifth paradigm into the analysis of the organisation. The so-called complexity paradigm, which was formed in 1980\u27s based on findings about complex systems and networks that emerged in natural and social sciences, summarizes all other paradigms, integrating them into a coherent unit. According to the author, the approach that exploits the benefits of each previously known paradigm illustrates comprehensively the complexity of organisational cultures, whereas the new paradigm upgrades our previous knowledge on organisations.Avtor predstavi večparadigmatsko raziskavo organizacijske kulture v slovenskem ornitološkem društvu, kjer je od leta 2006 do 2008 izvajal etnografsko raziskavo. Poleg funkcionalistične, interpretivistične, radikalno-strukturalistične in radikalno-humanistične paradigme, ki sta jih predstavila Gibson Burrell in Gareth Morgan, uvede pri analizi te organizacije še peto, kompleksnostno paradigmo, ki se je na podlagi naravoslovnih in družboslovnih odkritij o kompleksnih sistemih in omrežjih oblikovala v osemdesetih letih 20. stoletja in povzema vse ostale paradigme ter jih povezuje v celoto. Avtor trdi, da lahko s takšnim pristopom, pri katerem izrabimo prednosti vsake od štirih doslej znanih paradigem, celovito prikažemo kompleksnost organizacijskih kultur, s kompleksnostno paradigmo pa nadgradimo dosedanje védenje o organizacijah

Organizacijski kristal: karizmatični vodja kot pobudnik prostovoljstva v organizaciji

V članku je predstavljena zgodba posameznika, ki je ob koncu 70. let 20. stoletja v Sloveniji s skupino navdušencev zasnoval ornitološko društvo. Avtor analizira njegove vodstvene lastnosti, predvsem pa karizmo, zaradi katere so ga drugi člani priznali za osrednjo avtoriteto in vodjo, čeprav formalno te funkcije v organizaciji ni nikoli prevzel. Društvo je dve desetletji ohranilo zasnovo, ki je sledila ustanoviteljevim temeljnim zamislim, šele po njegovem nepričakovanem odhodu leta 1999 pa se je organizacijska kultura temeljito preoblikovala. *** The article presents the role of an individual who at the end of 1970’s established the Slovenian ornithological association in cooperation with a group of enthusiasts. The author analyses his leaders’characteristics, especially his charisma, which made him the central authority in the association, even though he never took over a formal position of the leader. The association kept the original structure, which followed founder’s initial concepts and ideas, for two decades and the organisational culture was radically transformed only after he unexpectedly left the association in 1999

“Ne potrebujemo še enega junaka!” Pomen slavnih osebnosti v času poresnice

The article presents and compares the rise of two self-made politicians, Donald Trump in the US and Ivan Kramberger of Slovenia. Their presidential candidacies were based of their fame and fortune, rather than on the basis of their political experience. The author notes that the self-promotion strategies, utilised by Trump and Kramberger, are not used only politicians, but also by other outstanding individuals who take care of their own popularity with pseudo-events, spread through the media and online networks. *** Prispevek predstavi in primerja vzpon dveh samoniklih politikov, Donalda Trumpa v ZDA in Ivana Krambergerja v Sloveniji. Oba sta za predsednika države kandidirala na temeljih svoje slave in bogastva, namesto na podlagi političnih izkušenj. Avtor ugotavlja, da podobnih strategij samouprizarjanja kot Trump in Kramberger ne uporabljajo le politiki, temveč tudi drugi izstopajoči posamezniki, ki skrbijo za lastno priljubljenost s psevdo-dogodki, ki jih širijo po medijih in spletnih omrežjih

Skupnizacija kot seštevek skupnosti in organizacije: Primer ornitološkega in naravovarstvenega društva

Prispevek, ki je nastal na podlagi etnografske raziskave, osvetli dinamiko razmerij v slovenskem ornitološkem in naravovarstvenem društvu DOPPS, v katerem se prepletajo prostovoljske in profesionalne dejavnosti. Na primeru društva prikaže konfliktna razmerja med skupinami, hkrati pa opiše recipročnost in sodelovanje ter poenotenje kulturnih predpostavk, ki so pomembne za doseganje skupnih ciljev. Avtor ugotavlja, da nestabilna in nasprotujoča si razmerja v društvu utemeljujejo nenavaden preplet med hierarhično organizacijo in egalitarno skupnostjo, ki jo britanski socialni antropolog Martin Parker imenuje »skupnizacija«. Takšna družbena oblika je sicer strukturirana in organizirana, a hkrati utemeljena na rudimentarni pripadnosti in solidarnosti njenih članov. Meja med delom in prostim časom je v njej v dobršni meri zabrisana, hierarhična razmerja niso jasna in poudarjena, njeni člani imajo enak delež pri produkciji in dejavnostih, vanjo rekrutirajo predvsem enako misleče posameznike, odločanje v njej pa poteka počasi in z demokratičnimi procesi. Številne od teh lastnosti najdemo v DOPPS, ki deluje kot preplet organizacije in omrežja oziroma skupnosti. Organizacija torej soobstaja in se simbiotično dopolnjuje z omrežjem ali skupnostjo kot entiteta, ki je ne moremo upodobiti s preprostim dvodimenzionalnim modelom (organigramom). V njej se namreč prepletata dva modela sodelovanja, in sicer hierarhična organizacija s »piramidalno« strukturo ter horizontalna skupnost oziroma omrežje prostovoljcev, v katerem se razmerja nenehno na novo definirajo

De l’observation à la protection des oiseaux

Les ornithologues amateurs sont connus, ou au moins stéréotypés, pour leur tendance à « collectionner » les observations d’oiseaux, et à les classer dans des catégories bien organisées – les groupes taxonomiques. Mais en est-il toujours vraiment ainsi ? Les membres de la plus grande association d’ornithologie slovène fournissent un exemple contraire. Ils ont commencé à regarder les oiseaux du point de vue de la conservation de la nature. Au niveau de l’association, cette transformation du collectionneur en protecteur des oiseaux commence par le fait de se distinguer du père fondateur de l’organisation qui était la principale force qui portait le catalogage initial des oiseaux slovènes dans les années 1970 et 1980. Une transformation de l’association s’est produite après son départ ; elle a conduit les ornithologues à percevoir autrement le monde naturel. Ils continuent à observer les oiseaux, mais leur principal objectif concerne désormais la protection des oiseaux ainsi que d’autres espèces animales et végétales ainsi que leurs habitats.Birdwatchers are, at least stereotypically, known for their tendency to “collect” bird-sights, and order them into neatly organized categories – taxonomic groups. But is it necessarily true? Members of the largest Slovenian birdwatching association provide an opposite example. They started to perceive birds from the nature conservation point of view. At the level of the association, such a shift from collecting to protecting birds was demarcated by the departure of the organisation’s founding “father” who was the central force behind initial “catalogisation” of Slovenian birds in the 1970s and 1980s. A transformation in the association occurred after his departure, and made birdwatchers perceive the natural world in a different way. They still watch birds, but their primary focus has switched to protection of birds as well as other animal and plant species and their habitats.Los observadores de aves se conocen, o al menos estereotipado, como coleccionistas de observaciones de aves, que les ordenan en categorías bien organizadas – los grupos taxonómicos. Pero ¿siempre es cierto? Los miembros de la asociación más grande de la ornitología eslovena son un ejemplo contrario. Comenzaron a observar las aves desde el punto de vista de la conservación de la naturaleza. En la asociación, esta transformación del colector hacia el protector del pájaro comienza con el hecho de distinguirse del padre fundador de la organización que era la fuerza principal que llevaba la catalogación inicial de los pájaros eslovenos en los años 1970 y 1980. Una transformación de la asociación se produjo después de su partida; llevó a los ornitólogos a percibir el mundo natural de forma diferente. Siguen observando los pájaros, pero su enfoque principal ahora es la protección de las aves y otros animales y plantas y sus hábitats