Social and cultural anthropology examines contemporary cultural and social phenomena and analyzes them both historically and comparatively. The subject teaches the scientific foundations for conceptualizing and critically investigating phenomena such as cultural change, ethnicity, nationalism, traditionalism, indigeneity, and (de)globalization through empirical research. Academic integrity plays a central role here, especially in relation to global power inequalities, colonialism, and their consequences, such as exploitation and racism. This knowledge is becoming increasingly important in an age of expanding global interdependence and, at the same time, growing neo-nationalisms and radical counter-movements. Historically, anthropology in German-speaking countries focused primarily on non-European societies and diaspora groups, but this regional demarcation is slowly fading.
The bachelor's degree program in social and cultural anthropology focuses on the reflexive application of cultural and social theory towards a critical interpretation of diverse human strategies and institutions. Students in anthropology deal empirically, practically, and theoretically with fundamental areas of research, such as different economic systems, religious practices, political and communicative forms, kinship structures, gender relations and sexuality, migration and mobility, as well as material culture, production, and consumption. Based on in-depth regional and subject-specific knowledge, students develop an understanding of the complex relationships between social phenomena, taking particular account of their dynamics and mutability.
Students minoring in this subject gain a basic understanding of ethnographic field research as a central empirical method of anthropological investigation, which often involves the researcher becoming socially and culturally embedded in their research context and participating in the observation of everyday life. In doing so, students critically reflect on both their own assumptions and those of society.
At the Faculty for Social and Cultural Anthropology, cultural and social phenomena around the world are examined in terms of their uniqueness and interdependence from the perspective of the actors involved. The topics covered in teaching and research span a broad field, ranging from militarization and decolonial peace practices to religious dynamics, resource cultures and human-environment relations, migration, border regimes and tourism, political humor and activism, affects and intimacy, representation and knowledge production, to trade, urbanity, and museums. Faculty and students conduct research in various regions of Africa, Western and Southern Europe, Central Asia and the Caucasus, South Asia and Southeast Asia, as well as North and Latin America.
As part of their bachelor's degree program, students benefit from the diverse collaborations of the Faculty of Social and Cultural Anthropology. Its partners include the Frobenius Institute for Research in Cultural Anthropology, the Point Sud Research Center in Bamako (Mali), and the Weltkulturenmuseum Frankfurt. In addition, there are international partner universities—including EHESS in Paris, France, San Francisco State University in the USA, and UFSCar in Brazil—as well as numerous European partner universities where students can study abroad as part of the Erasmus program (see Wege ins Ausland).
As a comparatively small faculty, students receive particularly close support and supervision.
The minor bachelor's degree program in social and cultural anthropology is an undergraduate academic minor program which, in combination with a major bachelor's degree program, leads to a first academic or professionally qualifying degree.