Research Strategies in Human Biology Field and Survey Studies [Paperback]

This book is about doing field research - the obstacles that are faced and the strategies used.This book is about the process of doing research, not about the results obtained. A number of researchers with experience working on problems including environmental stresses, population genetics, parasitic vectors and vital records describe obstacles encountered and successful strategies employed in their own studies and in those of others. One learns to do research by trial and error, but accounts such as these can supplement what one learns from mentors and fellow students.This book is about the process of doing research, not about the results obtained. A number of researchers with experience working on problems including environmental stresses, population genetics, parasitic vectors and vital records describe obstacles encountered and successful strategies employed in their own studies and in those of others. One learns to do research by trial and error, but accounts such as these can supplement what one learns from mentors and fellow students.This book is about the process of doing research in human biology. Seasoned researchers share their experiences working on problems of interest to biological anthropologists, including environmental stresses, population genetics, parasitic vectors and vital records. They describe obstacles encountered and successful strategies employed in their own studies and in those of others that may be of use to beginning researchers in this area.List of boxes; List of contributors; Preface; 1. Planning a research project G. W. Lasker; 2. Research designs and sampling strategies C. G. N. Mascie-Taylor; 3. Biocultural studies of ethnic groups B. Bogin; 4. Migration M. A. Little and P. W. Leslie; 5. Collection of human population genetic data D. F. Roberts; 6. Nutritional studies in biological anthropology S. J. Ulijaszek and S. S. Strickland; 7. Historical demography and population structure J. H. Mielke and A. C. Swedlund; 8. Writing for pulÃS