ANTH 110-001: Introduction to Anthropology
All students are required to complete a research paper. This paper should be six pages in length not including title page or References Cited page, double-spaced,
numbered, and with one-inch margins. Please use Times New Roman 12 pt. and follow APA style (6th ed.) provided in the APA manual and see Purdue’s Online Writing Lab
(OWL) website: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/. The paper is expected to be written with correct and readable English. For help writing, formatting, or editing your
paper you may want to visit the UNL Writing Center located in Love Library (http://www.unl.edu/writing/home). The research paper must include a cover sheet with course
title, course number, student’s name, date, and the title of the paper.
The research problem should be stated at the beginning in the introduction (i.e., what is your topic, why it is important, what you are hoping to accomplish), followed
by the main body of the paper where you develop your own point of view or argument and cite references when appropriate, and a conclusion, which includes implications
of the research, suggestions for future research, etc. Please title your sections accordingly. Please think of an appropriate subtitle for the Main Body section.
Research papers must use a minimum of five academic literature sources in addition to your textbook and internet citations and should be included on a separate page
titled “References Cited.” A good place to begin to look for references is your textbook that contains numerous relevant citations. There is a sample “References
Cited” at the bottom of this document for your reference. Please note that sites such as Wikipedia are not academic references and should not be included in your
research or “References Cited” page.
This paper should focus on one area of investigation, research problem, or any topic discussed in class or in the text. This includes a myriad of topics relevant to
any of the four subdisciplines of anthropology as well as those encompassing applied problems or issues. Part of this assignment requires students to select paper
topics rather than the instructor assigning specific topics to students. Please try and be creative but also choose a topic that interests you. The textbook is an
excellent starting point for assisting you in selecting a topic and for locating references when writing your paper. Additionally there is a list of possible topics
below in this document. You must have your topic approved by the instructor prior to your research.
Each student must submit a one-paragraph abstract (electronic only) of their topic for approval by March 6 to Rebecca Salem at rsalem13@gmail.com. You must include
your name in the subject of the email with this abstract. This abstract should introduce the topic and explain your specific focus and what question you are looking to
answer in your research paper. The final research paper—both electronic and hard copy—are due on April 17 by the beginning of class to Rebecca Salem in class and to
rsalem13@gmail.com. The research paper constitutes 75/300 points or 25% of the final grade. The research paper must include a cover sheet with course title and number,
name, date, and title of the paper. Your digital copy of the paper must be submitted with the subject of your email stating your name and include your digital copy of
the paper attached as a .doc/.docx file and saved with your name (for example: Salem, Rebecca Final Paper).
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Grading Rubric for Research Paper TITLE SECTION HEADINGS
Format and Procedures (15 pts. possible) _____
______Paper topic (abstract) has been approved by the instructors (2 pts.)
______Electronic and hard copy of paper is turned in by April 17 (2 pts)/Additional points will be subtracted depending upon tardiness
______Cover sheet includes course title, course number, student’s name, date submitted, and the title of the paper (1 pt.)
______Double-spaced and one inch margins (2 pts.)
______Each page is numbered (1 pt.)
______Times New Roman 12 point font (1 pt.)
______Includes section titled “References Cited” (2 pts.) (this is the final page, follows format above and includes all materials cited in the paper and does not
could as one of the pages of your essay)
______Includes a minimum of five references; minimum of two journals (2 pts.)
______Paper is 6 pages in length (2 pts.) – these six pages does not include the title page, nor the references cited page
Content (60 pts. possible) _____
______States research question (i.e., topic of the research) in the introduction (10 pts.) (what is your topic, why it is important, what you are hoping to accomplish)
SECTION HEADING INCLUDED
______Main body of the paper (40 pts.) (develops your own point of view or argument, citing references when appropriate) SECTION HEADING INCLUDED
______Conclusions section (10 pts.) (e.g., implications of the research, suggestions for future research, conclusions) SECTION HEADING INCLUDED
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Paper Topics
A good strategy for choosing a paper topic is to identify a topic from lecture, the syllabus, films, or the text that interests you. There are a large number of topics
to choose from but try not to pick one that is so broad that you can’t cover it sufficiently in six to eight pages. For example, possible tool use among
australopithecines is more manageable than just “Australopithecines”. Below are a few topics to get you thinking in this direction. Some are too broad to be paper
topics but paper topics are embedded within them. Again, start by looking in your text for relevant information.
Sickle-cell anemia in modern populations Human behavioral ecology (some aspect of) Absolute or relative dating techniques Parental investment patterns among . . .
Distribution of ABO blood groups The Piltdown hoax Infectious disease (specific) Bonobos as model for human evolution Stresses of high altitudes Differences
between bonobos/common Origins of HIV Hypotheses explaining bipedalism The incest taboo among humans The earliest hominids Anthropological concepts of race
Oldowan tools/Excavations at Olduvai Tool use among chimpanzees The Australopithecines (select topic) Dominance hierarchies (macaques, chimps) Some aspect
relating to Homo erectus Aggressive interactions among chimpanzees Acheulian tools Hunting among chimpanzees What happened to the Neandertals? Infanticide among
nonhuman primates The Nariokotome site Some aspect of gorilla behavior, morphology Some aspect relating to early Homo sapiens Use of vocalizations by nonhuman
primates Neandertals (select topic) Emergence of language Cave art Experimental archaeology and early stone tools The Mesolithic Ethics in archaeology
Kennewick Man NAGPRA Regional subsistence practices Prehistoric exotic material exchange CRM today Geographic information systems and archaeology Feminist
archaeology/anthropology Origin of food production in the Old World Bridewealth/Dowry Reciprocity in band societies Parenting strategies among the Ju/’hoansi
Warfare among the Yanomamo (or other topics) The impact of dams on the environment Cultural change among the Inuit Revitalization movements Rites of passage
Multiculturalism The first American farmers History of ethics in cultural anthropology Ethnographic techniques Some specific aspect of globalization Nonverbal
communication Sociolinguistics Contemporary issues among foragers Pastoralism and herding The Ju/’hoansi/!Kung (selected topics) Potlatching Pantribal
sodalities and age grades Changes in North American kinship patterns Same sex marriages Plural marriage /Polygyny, Polyandry Industrial stratification
Colonialism and development Cultural materialism Indigenous land rights Exogamy, alliance and the incest taboo Some aspect of magic and/or religion The Nuer
(selected topics) Sexuality among the Etoro Influential anthropologists (select one) The Central Kalahari Game Reserve (Botswana)
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References Cited Example
Bates, D.G. (2005). Human adaptive strategies. Boston: Pearson Education. Cartwright, J. (2008). Evolution and human behavior: Darwinian perspectives on human nature
(2nd ed.). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Ember, C.R., Ember, M., & Peregrine, P.N. (2015). Anthropology (14th Ed.) Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education Inc.
Hitchcock, R.K., Sapignoli, M., & Babchuk, W.A. (2011). What about our rights? Settlements, subsistence and livelihood security among Central Kalahari San and
Bakgalagadi. International Journal of Human Rights 15(1): 62-88. Kottak, C.P. (2016). Anthropology: Appreciating human diversity (16th ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill.
Leakey, M.D., and Hay, R.L. (1979). Pliocene footprints in Laetoli beds at Laetoli, Northern Tanzania. Nature 278: 317-323. Murdock, G.P., and Provost, C. (1973).
Factors in the division of labor by sex: A Cross-cultural analysis. Ethnology XII (2): 203-225. Peters-Golden, H. (2012). Culture sketches: Case studies in
anthropology (6th ed.). New York: McGraw- Hill. Vrba, E.S. (1985). Ecological and adaptive changes associated with early hominid evolution. In E. Delson (Ed.),
Ancestors: The hard evidence (pp. 63-71). New York: Alan R. Liss.
You are encouraged to use both books and journals. Relevant journals include American Anthropologist, American Antiquity, American Journal of Physical Anthropology,
American Journal of Primatology, Annual Review of Anthropology, Antiquity, Before Farming, Current Anthropology, Ethnology, Evolutionary Anthropology, Folia
Primatologia, International Journal of Human Rights, International Journal of Primatology, Journal of Human Evolution, Human Nature, Midcontinental Journal of
Archaeology, Nature, North American Archaeologist, Plains Anthropologist, Science, etc.
