Conservative Thought in Applied Anthropology: A Critique

Most of the people in Latin America countries live in an actual state of unrest which frequently manifests itself in outbursts of violence. This is a reflection, without doubt, of a growing demand from large sectors of the population to achieve a rapid and complete satisfaction of their established needs, as well as of the new ones which arise from contact with forms of modern urban life. Even with national and international efforts undertaken to raise the living standards of millions of Latin Americans, our region continues to be one of the poorest in the world. This fact cannot be ignored by those who work applying social science knowledge to the integral development of our countries. Do the social sciences, particularly anthropology, possess the theoretical equipment necessary to understand Latin American problems and to propose effective solutions for them? Undoubtedly the social sciences are indeed prepared to contribute their part in such tasks, even though, of course, the contribution of other disciplines is needed.