NCJ Number
92827
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 11 Issue: 6 Dated: (1983) Pages: 495-504
Date Published
1983
Length
10 pages
Annotation
The role of anthropology in law enforcement involves three aspects of law enforcement activity: forensic anthropology, police-community relations research, and legal ethnographic research on the law enforcement agencies themselves.
Abstract
The first of these contributions to law enforcement by physical anthropologists faces competition from other closely related fields. Police-community relations research is a potential growth area for the application of anthropological efforts, as is legal ethnographic analysis of police organizations. These latter two areas are within the realm of social anthropology, while the former is a specialty of physical anthropology. This article reviews the contributions of anthropologists and the applications of anthropological methods to law enforcement. It contends that criminal justice educators and police practitioners alike can benefit from knowing more about how these anthropological specialties have contributed and can continue to contribute to law enforcement. (Author abstract)