2025 IB DP Social and Cultural Anthropology Practice Paper with Answers

Definition of Agency: Agency refers to the capacity of individuals to act independently, make their own choices, and exert power to influence, contest, or transform social structures. Explanation of Agency and Structure: Although individuals are shaped by cultural norms and structural constraints, they are not passive; they actively negotiate, adapt to, or resist these forces. Ethnographic Example: In 'Weapons of the Weak', James Scott demonstrates how Malaysian peasants exercise agency through everyday forms of resistance—such as foot-dragging, feigned ignorance, and gossip—to subtly subvert the power of wealthy landowners without engaging in overt, risky rebellion.

3 to 4 marks: The response provides a clear and accurate definition of agency as the capacity for independent action and choice-making within or against structural constraints. It offers a well-integrated ethnographic example that clearly illustrates how agency is exercised in a specific context. 1 to 2 marks: The response provides a basic or superficial definition of agency (e.g., merely equating it to 'free will') and the explanation or ethnographic example is either missing, highly generic, or poorly connected to the concept. 0 marks: The response shows no understanding of the concept.

Definition of Agency: Agency refers to the capacity of individuals to act independently, make their own choices, and exert power to influence, contest, or transform social structures. Explanation of Agency and Structure: Although individuals are shaped by cultural norms and structural constraints, they are not passive; they actively negotiate, adapt to, or resist these forces. Ethnographic Example: In 'Weapons of the Weak', James Scott demonstrates how Malaysian peasants exercise agency through everyday forms of resistance—such as foot-dragging, feigned ignorance, and gossip—to subtly subvert the power of wealthy landowners without engaging in overt, risky rebellion.

3 to 4 marks: The response provides a clear and accurate definition of agency as the capacity for independent action and choice-making within or against structural constraints. It offers a well-integrated ethnographic example that clearly illustrates how agency is exercised in a specific context. 1 to 2 marks: The response provides a basic or superficial definition of agency (e.g., merely equating it to 'free will') and the explanation or ethnographic example is either missing, highly generic, or poorly connected to the concept. 0 marks: The response shows no understanding of the concept.

An excellent response will:
1. Clearly identify and describe a relevant studied ethnography (e.g., focusing on diaspora, migration, labor, community-building, or ritual spaces of solidarity).
2. Apply the key concept of belonging to both the passage and the chosen ethnography.
3. Identify similarities (e.g., how both groups use shared rituals, language, or foods to establish a protective sub-culture or safe space in an unfamiliar or hostile environment).
4. Identify differences (e.g., the informal, digital mobilization via WhatsApp in the tech-worker diaspora versus physical, historically rooted traditional structures in the comparative ethnography; or differing structural constraints like precarious corporate visas versus other forms of displacement).
5. Use specific anthropological terminology and construct a balanced, comparative argument.

[1–2 marks]: The response is primarily descriptive and may only vaguely refer to the passage or the chosen ethnography. The concept of belonging is mentioned but not well-analyzed or applied. The comparison is superficial or highly unbalanced.

[3–4 marks]: The response presents a comparative analysis between the passage and a chosen ethnography. The concept of belonging is applied to both, with some clear similarities and/or differences identified, though one side of the comparison may be stronger than the other.

[5–6 marks]: The response offers a well-structured, balanced, and nuanced comparative analysis. The concept of belonging is effectively and consistently applied to both the passage and the chosen ethnography. Key similarities and differences are clearly articulated and supported by rich ethnographic details from both sources. Anthropological terminology is used accurately.

An excellent response will structure the comparative essay as follows:

1. **Introduction**:
- Briefly outline how the passage and the chosen ethnography explore the theme of belonging and the creation or negotiation of social boundaries.
- State the thesis, highlighting key points of comparison (both similarities and differences).

2. **Comparative Body Paragraphs**:
- **Similarities**: Compare how both texts demonstrate the active agency of marginalized or displaced subjects in creating informal solidarity networks. For example, students might compare the symbolic rituals in the passage to religious or kinship-based rituals in their chosen ethnography that reinforce community cohesion.
- **Differences**: Contrast the structural constraints or the nature of the social boundaries in both contexts. For instance, the passage focuses on displacement and urban precarity, whereas the chosen ethnography might explore belonging framed around class struggles, indigenous land rights, or national borders.
- **Theoretical Integration**: Apply relevant anthropological concepts, such as Victor Turner's 'communitas' or Benedict Anderson's 'imagined communities', to deepen the comparative analysis.

3. **Conclusion**:
- Synthesize the comparison, reiterating how both texts enrich our anthropological understanding of belonging as a dynamic and contested process rather than a static state.

This question is marked according to the official IB Diploma Programme Social and Cultural Anthropology assessment criteria for Paper 1, Question 3/4 (10 marks):

- **9–10 marks**: The comparative analysis is highly effective, balanced, and well-structured. It clearly demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of the key concepts (belonging and boundaries) in both the passage and the chosen ethnography. Both similarities and differences are analyzed with depth and insight.
- **7–8 marks**: The comparative analysis is clear and structured but may be slightly unbalanced (e.g., more focus on the chosen ethnography than the passage, or vice versa). It successfully identifies and discusses both similarities and differences, though one aspect may be more developed than the other.
- **5–6 marks**: The response is more descriptive than analytical. It identifies similarities and/or differences but does not integrate them into a cohesive comparative framework, or it suffers from a lack of detail regarding either the passage or the chosen ethnography.
- **3–4 marks**: The essay relies heavily on description with little to no comparative structure. The understanding of the chosen ethnography or the passage is limited or superficial.
- **1–2 marks**: The response is highly fragmented, offering only superficial or irrelevant points with no clear structure or comparative focus.
- **0 marks**: The response does not meet any of the standards described above.

### Choosing the Concept: Identity

**1. Definition of Identity:**
Identity refers to the way individuals and groups define themselves and are defined by others. It is dynamic, constructed, and negotiated through social practices, relationships, and historical contexts.

**2. Application to the Passage:**
- The fishermen's identity (*pescadores*) is anchored in their labor, local ecological knowledge (reading tides), and shared practices (preparing nets).
- External conservation policies (the MPA) impose a structural shift, forcing a re-evaluation of identity.
- Generational division: Younger fishermen adapt their identity to the globalized tourist economy (tour guides), whereas elders perceive this as a loss of authentic selfhood and connection to place.

**3. Application to an External Ethnographic Study:**
- Students might compare this to a study such as Paige West's *Conservation Is Our Government Now* (focusing on how the Gimi people of Papua New Guinea navigate conservation initiatives that alter their relationships with the environment and redefine their identity).
- Alternatively, they could look at indigenous communities facing economic modernization (e.g., Tanya Murray Li's work on land and identity in Indonesia).

**4. Comparison and Synthesis:**
- Contrast how external structures (state environmental policies vs. capitalist market forces) disrupt local identity constructions.
- Discuss the tension between essentialist views of identity (often held by elders or romanticized by tourists) and relational, fluid views of identity adopted by younger generations.

---

### Choosing the Concept: Agency

**1. Definition of Agency:**
Agency is the capacity of individuals to act independently and make their own free choices, though this capacity is always shaped and constrained by structural conditions (power, class, gender, state policy).

**2. Application to the Passage:**
- The state's MPA acts as a structural constraint, limiting the fishermen's traditional mode of survival.
- The younger fishermen exercise agency by adapting to the new economic opportunities of eco-tourism.
- The elders exercise a different form of agency: preservation of memory, critique of the state, and resistance to the cultural loss of *pescadores* practices.

**3. Application to an External Ethnographic Study:**
- Students could compare this with Philippe Bourgois' *In Search of Respect* (where marginalized individuals in East Harlem exercise agency within highly constrained, drug-dominated economic structures).
- Alternatively, James C. Scott's *Weapons of the Weak* could show how peasants exercise everyday forms of resistance against structural domination.

**4. Comparison and Synthesis:**
- Compare how agency is enabled or constrained by state-led environmental initiatives versus market-driven capital.
- Examine the range of agency displayed (from adaptation/acquiescence to subtle resistance/conservation of tradition) in both the passage and the comparative ethnography.

**Marks [1–10] are awarded based on the following criteria:**

- **9–10 Marks:**
- The chosen concept is defined accurately and used consistently to frame the response.
- The essay shows an outstanding understanding of the passage, applying the concept with depth and sophistication.
- A highly appropriate and detailed comparative ethnographic study is introduced and analyzed in parallel.
- The comparison between the passage and the external study is highly structured, showing clear points of similarity, difference, or theoretical dialogue.

- **7–8 Marks:**
- The concept is well defined and applied consistently to both the passage and the external study.
- The comparative study is described with good ethnographic detail.
- A clear comparison is drawn, though one side of the comparison (the passage or the external study) may be slightly more developed than the other.

- **5–6 Marks:**
- The concept is defined, but its application is somewhat superficial or descriptive rather than analytical.
- The external study is relevant but may lack specific ethnographic detail or rely on generalized assertions.
- Comparative points are made but are mostly descriptive.

- **3–4 Marks:**
- Limited or incorrect definition of the chosen concept.
- Minimal application to either the passage or the external study.
- The comparative study is poorly described or lacks relevance.

- **1–2 Marks:**
- The essay is highly superficial, off-topic, or fails to define/apply the concept or compare it to an external ethnography.

### Essay Plan and Key Arguments

#### 1. Introduction
- **Definitions**: Define **positionality** (how the researcher's social, political, and cultural background shapes their perspective and interactions) and **power relations** (the inherent power asymmetry between the researcher, often backed by academic institutions and global privileges, and the research subjects).
- **Thesis**: Anthropological ethics demand constant self-reflexivity because the researcher's positionality directly influences what data is gathered, how interlocutors are represented, and whether the research reproduces colonial or class-based inequalities.

#### 2. Integration of Stimulus (A or B)
- Students must explicitly refer to one of the provided stimuli in the exam paper.
- **Application**: Analyze how the author of the stimulus positions themselves in the text. For example, is the researcher an 'outsider' navigating a foreign culture, or an 'insider' dealing with their own community? How does their presence affect the behavior or responses of the informants?

#### 3. Own Knowledge & Ethnographic Comparison
- **Example 1: Philippe Bourgois (*In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio*)**
- *Context*: Bourgois, a white, highly educated academic, conducted fieldwork among street-level drug dealers in East Harlem.
- *Ethical Dilemma*: His position of privilege created initial suspicion (informants feared he was undercover police or seeking to exploit them). He had to acknowledge his 'whiteness' and class privilege, demonstrating how unexamined positionality could lead to the reinforcing of racial stereotypes.
- **Example 2: Nancy Scheper-Hughes (*Death Without Weeping*)**
- *Context*: Conducting fieldwork in a Brazilian favela during a period of high infant mortality.
- *Ethical Dilemma*: She struggled with the tension between her role as an objective observer and her ethical duty as an activist and human being to intervene and provide medical aid. This illustrates how an anthropologist's ethical positionality can shift from detached researcher to active companion.

#### 4. Conceptual & Theoretical Analysis
- **Reflexivity**: Discuss reflexivity not just as a method, but as an ethical imperative. It is the active, ongoing process of criticizing one’s own biases and position in the field.
- **Crisis of Representation**: Refer to postmodern critiques (e.g., *Writing Culture* by Clifford and Marcus) which argue that ethnographies are 'partial truths' heavily shaped by the power dynamics of who is writing and who is being written about.
- **Collaborative Ethnography**: Discuss contemporary ethical solutions, such as co-authoring or sharing authority with interlocutors to mitigate power imbalances.

#### 5. Conclusion
- Summarize that ethical research is not simply about avoiding harm, but actively deconstructing the power hierarchies inherent in fieldwork. Reflexivity and a transparent acknowledgment of positionality are essential to producing just and responsible anthropology.

### Markbands (10 Marks Total)

- **0 marks**: The work does not reach a standard described by the descriptors below.
- **1–2 marks**: The response identifies one or more ethical concerns, but these are highly generalized, descriptive, or inaccurate. There is little or no reference to either the stimulus or own anthropological knowledge.
- **3–4 marks**: The response describes ethical concerns with some relevance to the prompt. There is a basic attempt to reference either the stimulus or own knowledge, but the essay remains highly descriptive with minimal analytical depth.
- **5–6 marks**: The response discusses the ethical implications of positionality and power relations, linking the discussion to both the chosen stimulus and own knowledge (e.g., an additional ethnographic study). The argument is coherent but may lack critical depth or balanced integration of theory and ethnography.
- **7–8 marks**: The response offers a well-structured and balanced discussion. It effectively integrates the chosen stimulus and relevant ethnographic examples from own knowledge to analyze how power dynamics and positionality affect fieldwork. Conceptual terms like *reflexivity* or *representation* are used accurately.
- **9–10 marks**: The response presents a sophisticated, critical, and nuanced argument. It seamlessly integrates the chosen stimulus and external ethnographic evidence to evaluate the ethical complexities of fieldwork. The student demonstrates excellent reflexive awareness, critically analyzing how the researcher's identity and institutional power shape knowledge production and representation.

### Essay Plan and Key Arguments

#### 1. Introduction
- **Definitions**: Define **positionality** (how the researcher's social, political, and cultural background shapes their perspective and interactions) and **power relations** (the inherent power asymmetry between the researcher, often backed by academic institutions and global privileges, and the research subjects).
- **Thesis**: Anthropological ethics demand constant self-reflexivity because the researcher's positionality directly influences what data is gathered, how interlocutors are represented, and whether the research reproduces colonial or class-based inequalities.

#### 2. Integration of Stimulus (A or B)
- Students must explicitly refer to one of the provided stimuli in the exam paper.
- **Application**: Analyze how the author of the stimulus positions themselves in the text. For example, is the researcher an 'outsider' navigating a foreign culture, or an 'insider' dealing with their own community? How does their presence affect the behavior or responses of the informants?

#### 3. Own Knowledge & Ethnographic Comparison
- **Example 1: Philippe Bourgois (*In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio*)**
- *Context*: Bourgois, a white, highly educated academic, conducted fieldwork among street-level drug dealers in East Harlem.
- *Ethical Dilemma*: His position of privilege created initial suspicion (informants feared he was undercover police or seeking to exploit them). He had to acknowledge his 'whiteness' and class privilege, demonstrating how unexamined positionality could lead to the reinforcing of racial stereotypes.
- **Example 2: Nancy Scheper-Hughes (*Death Without Weeping*)**
- *Context*: Conducting fieldwork in a Brazilian favela during a period of high infant mortality.
- *Ethical Dilemma*: She struggled with the tension between her role as an objective observer and her ethical duty as an activist and human being to intervene and provide medical aid. This illustrates how an anthropologist's ethical positionality can shift from detached researcher to active companion.

#### 4. Conceptual & Theoretical Analysis
- **Reflexivity**: Discuss reflexivity not just as a method, but as an ethical imperative. It is the active, ongoing process of criticizing one’s own biases and position in the field.
- **Crisis of Representation**: Refer to postmodern critiques (e.g., *Writing Culture* by Clifford and Marcus) which argue that ethnographies are 'partial truths' heavily shaped by the power dynamics of who is writing and who is being written about.
- **Collaborative Ethnography**: Discuss contemporary ethical solutions, such as co-authoring or sharing authority with interlocutors to mitigate power imbalances.

#### 5. Conclusion
- Summarize that ethical research is not simply about avoiding harm, but actively deconstructing the power hierarchies inherent in fieldwork. Reflexivity and a transparent acknowledgment of positionality are essential to producing just and responsible anthropology.

### Markbands (10 Marks Total)

- **0 marks**: The work does not reach a standard described by the descriptors below.
- **1–2 marks**: The response identifies one or more ethical concerns, but these are highly generalized, descriptive, or inaccurate. There is little or no reference to either the stimulus or own anthropological knowledge.
- **3–4 marks**: The response describes ethical concerns with some relevance to the prompt. There is a basic attempt to reference either the stimulus or own knowledge, but the essay remains highly descriptive with minimal analytical depth.
- **5–6 marks**: The response discusses the ethical implications of positionality and power relations, linking the discussion to both the chosen stimulus and own knowledge (e.g., an additional ethnographic study). The argument is coherent but may lack critical depth or balanced integration of theory and ethnography.
- **7–8 marks**: The response offers a well-structured and balanced discussion. It effectively integrates the chosen stimulus and relevant ethnographic examples from own knowledge to analyze how power dynamics and positionality affect fieldwork. Conceptual terms like *reflexivity* or *representation* are used accurately.
- **9–10 marks**: The response presents a sophisticated, critical, and nuanced argument. It seamlessly integrates the chosen stimulus and external ethnographic evidence to evaluate the ethical complexities of fieldwork. The student demonstrates excellent reflexive awareness, critically analyzing how the researcher's identity and institutional power shape knowledge production and representation.

An outstanding response should: 1. Identify and define the chosen Area of Inquiry and core anthropological concepts (agency, structure, structural inequality, power). 2. Present a clear thesis outlining how structures both limit and shape the forms of agency available. 3. Integrate rich ethnographic material (e.g., Philippe Bourgois' 'In Search of Respect' for Production, Exchange, and Consumption, demonstrating how street-level crack dealers express agency within the highly constrained structure of marginalized urban poverty and systemic racism; or Nancy Scheper-Hughes' 'Death Without Weeping' for Health, Illness, and Healing, demonstrating how maternal selective neglect is a form of survival agency shaped by extreme structural poverty). 4. Critique theoretical perspectives (e.g., Bourdieu's habitus, Foucault's power/knowledge, or Scott's 'weapons of the weak'). 5. Conclude with a nuanced synthesis of how agency is never fully absent but is structurally conditioned.

Level 1 (1-3 marks): Descriptive, lacks focus on the chosen Area of Inquiry, minimal or absent ethnographic evidence. Level 2 (4-6 marks): Some conceptual awareness but relies heavily on narrative description of ethnography without analytical connection to structural inequality and agency. Level 3 (7-9 marks): Consistent focus on the prompt. Uses appropriate ethnographic material to show how structure limits agency, though the analysis may be one-sided. Level 4 (10-12 marks): Clear, critical analysis. Demonstrates a strong understanding of the dialectic between structure and agency within the chosen Area of Inquiry. Ethnography is well-integrated and conceptualized. Level 5 (13-15 marks): Sophisticated, balanced, and highly reflexive anthropological analysis. Convincingly demonstrates how agency is negotiated, contested, or transformed under structural pressures, supported by precise ethnographic details and theoretical agility.

An outstanding essay should begin by defining key anthropological concepts such as structural violence, biomedicine, medicalization, and local idioms of distress. The essay should establish a clear thesis: health and illness are not merely biological realities but are deeply mediated by socio-economic inequalities and political power. In the body paragraphs, the student should deploy detailed ethnographic evidence. For instance, they might discuss Paul Farmer's work in Haiti to show how structural violence, historical poverty, and political instability directly manifest as physical vulnerability to infectious disease. Alternatively, they might use Nancy Scheper-Hughes's work in Brazil to analyze how the medicalization of hunger as 'nervoso' hides the structural inequalities of sugarcane plantation economies. Another valid direction would be to analyze how marginalized groups utilize healing rituals (such as spirit possession or traditional healing) to express structural distress and resist state power or biomedical dominance. The conclusion should synthesize these arguments, emphasizing how anthropology challenges purely biological explanations of disease by situating health, suffering, and healing within wider political-economic structures.

Marks are awarded based on the standard IB 15-mark essay rubric. Level 1 (1 to 3 marks): Superficial understanding of concepts; minimal or absent ethnographic examples; descriptive writing. Level 2 (4 to 6 marks): Basic understanding of concepts; some relevance to power and healing; ethnography is mentioned but lacks depth or integration. Level 3 (7 to 9 marks): Sound knowledge of concepts; relevant ethnographic details provided; some attempts at analyzing the link between power relations/structural violence and healing/illness. Level 4 (10 to 12 marks): Clear, analytical focus on how power structures shape healing and illness; well-integrated ethnographic study; demonstrates critical awareness of anthropological debates on medicalization or structural violence. Level 5 (13 to 15 marks): Exceptional analytical depth; masterful integration of ethnographic material; highly nuanced discussion of theory; sophisticated critique of how structural factors shape bodily suffering and the agency within healing practices.

An excellent response should define key concepts including conflict, symbolic practices, ritual, and reconciliation. The essay must outline how conflicts are not merely physical battles but are deeply symbolic struggles. The student should formulate a thesis arguing that rituals and symbols can either institutionalize and sustain conflict (by reinforcing 'us versus them' dichotomies) or serve as powerful mechanisms for conflict resolution and social healing. For ethnographic support, students could analyze Victor Turner's concept of 'social dramas' and the role of ritual in restoring social cohesion. Alternatively, they could focus on ethnographic studies of post-conflict contexts, such as the Gacaca courts in post-genocide Rwanda, showing how cultural rituals of public confession and community healing were used to resolve conflict. Another strong choice would be studying the Northern Irish conflict, analyzing how sectarian parades and murals serve as symbolic practices that sustain historical conflicts. The essay should conclude by evaluating the transformative power of symbols, illustrating how they can both cement divisions and facilitate the transition from conflict to peace.

Marks are awarded based on the standard IB 15-mark essay rubric. Level 1 (1 to 3 marks): Superficial and highly descriptive; lacks focus on ritual/symbolic dimensions; minimal ethnographic reference. Level 2 (4 to 6 marks): Demonstrates a basic understanding of conflict and symbols; some ethnographic reference but it remains disconnected from the core argument. Level 3 (7 to 9 marks): Good conceptual understanding; provides descriptive ethnographic examples showing how rituals relate to conflict; offers some analysis of resolution or maintenance. Level 4 (10 to 12 marks): Strong analytical approach; clearly demonstrates how symbolic practices sustain or resolve conflicts; effective integration of detailed ethnographic evidence. Level 5 (13 to 15 marks): Outstanding critique; deep conceptual precision regarding ritual and conflict; sophisticated comparative perspective or highly nuanced analysis of a specific ethnographic context; demonstrates critical reflection on the efficacy of symbolic resolution.