Haviland et al's streamlined market leading text presents cultural anthropology in vivid, accessible terms that shows students how the field is relevant to understanding the complex world around them. The authors present the fundamental concepts from a holistic perspective using three unifying themes to frame the text: 1) the varied ways humans face the challenges of existence, 2) the connections between culture and biology in shaping human behavior, and 3) the impact of globalization on peoples and cultures around the world. They also integrate coverage of race, class, gender, and ethnicity throughout the text, and in this edition, a new chapter "From Fieldwork to Interpretation," covers theory and methods more explicitly to help instructors meet general education requirements. The text's superlative writing, strong pedagogical program, rich art program, and robust collection of supplements provide exceptional teaching and learning experiences for instructors and students alike.

In addition to culture, this textbook introduces the basics of physical and linguistic anthropology, as well as archaeology. It explores the ways societies adapt through culture to their environment, the formation of groups, political and religious organization, and the process of cultural change. The twelfth edition adds a chapter on the methods and theories of ethnographic fieldwork. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

"The greatest strength of CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY: THE HUMAN CHALLENGE is its success in addressing complex concepts in a manner that is memorable and easy to comprehend. Another strength is in the choice of examples; most all of them engage the reader and elicit furthering investigation. Finally, the book's photographs and other images provide a visual element that reinforces significant issues in anthropology."

The authors do a good job of providing "interesting specific examples and ethnographic accounts to give the chapter context and help illustrate sometimes abstract informationà"

Explore the most fascinating, creative, dangerous, and complex species alive today: you and your neighbors in the global village. With compelling photos, engaging examples, and select studies by anthropologists in far-flung places, the authors of CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY: The Human Challenge provide a holistic view of anthropology to help you make sense of today's world. With this text you will discover the different ways humans face the challenge of existence, the connection between biology and culture in the shaping of human beliefs and behavior, and the impact of globalization on peoples and cultures around the world.

Dr. William A. Haviland is Professor Emeritus at the University of Vermont, where he has taught since 1965. He holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania and has published widely on archaeological, ethnological, and physical anthropological research carried out in Guatemala, Maine, and Vermont. Dr. Haviland is a member of many professional societies, including the American Anthropological Association and the American Association for the Advancement of Science and he has participated in many projects, including "Gender and the Anthropological Curriculum," sponsored by the American Anthropological Association in 1988. Dr. Haviland has always loved teaching and writing for Anthropology students and he has a passionate interest in indigenous rights, having worked with the Maya for years. He continues to work with Native Americans in the northeastern United States.Harald E.L. Prins (Ph.D. New School 1988) is a University Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at Kansas State University and guest curator at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution. Born in The Netherlands, he studied at universities in Europe and the United States. He has done extensive fieldwork among indigenous peoples in South and North America, published dozens of articles in five languages, co-edited some books, and authored "The Mi'kmaq: Resistance, Accommodation, and Cultural Survival" (1996). He also made award-winning documentaries and served as president of the Society for Visual Anthropology and visual anthropology editor of the "American Anthropologist." Dr. Prins has won his university's most prestigious undergraduate teaching awards and held the Coffman Chair for University Distinguished Teaching Scholars (2004-05). Active in human rights, he served as expert witness in Native rights cases in the U.S. Senate and various Canadian courts, and was instrumental in the successful federal recognition and land claims of the Aroostook Band of Micmacs (1991).Dr. Dana Walrath is Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Vermont and a Women's Studies affiliated faculty member. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and is a medical and biological anthropologist with principal interests in biocultural aspects of reproduction, health and disease, sex differences, genetics, and evolutionary medicine. Dr. Walrath received pre-doctoral fellowships from the National Science Foundation, Foreign Languages Area Studies and the University of Pennsylvania. Before joining the faculty at the University of Vermont in 2000, she taught at the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University. Her recent research has been supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration and the Centers for Disease Control. Dr. Walrath's publications have appeared in "Current Anthropology," "American Anthropologist" and "American Journal of Physical Anthropology". She is an active member of the Council on the Anthropology of Reproduction and the Society of Medical Anthropology. She is presently serving on a national committee to develop women's health care learning objectives for undergraduate medical education sponsored by the Association of Professors of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Part I. CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY: THE CHALLENGE OF KNOWING HUMANITY. 1. The Essence of Anthropology. 2. The Characteristics of Culture. 3. From Fieldwork to Interpretation. 4. Becoming Human Part II. CULTURE AND SURVIVAL: THE CHALLENGE OF COMMUNICATING, RAISING CHILDREN, AND STAYING ALIVE. 5. Language and Communication. 6. Social Identity, Personality, and Gender. 7. Patterns of Subsistence. 8. Economic Systems. Part III. FORMATION OF GROUPS: THE CHALLENGE OF COOPERATION. 9. Sex, Marriage, and Family. 10. Kinship and Descent. 11. Grouping by Gender, Age, Common Interest and Class. Part IV. SEARCH FOR ORDER: THE CHALLENGE OF DISORDER. 12. Politics, Power, and Violence. 13. Spirituality, Religion, and the Supernatural. 14. The Arts. Part V. CHANGE AND THE FUTURE: THE CHALLENGE OF GLOBALIZATION. 15. Processes of Change. 16. Global Challenges, Local Responses, and the Role of Anthropology. Glossary. Bibliography. Photo Credits. Index.