Connecting and Change in African Societies: Examples of "Ethnographies of Linking" in Anthropology

Authors

  • Mirjam de Bruijn Leiden University
  • Rijk van Dijk Leiden University

Keywords:

linking, connections, agency, social change, ICT, passports-to-life, Mali, Cameroon, Botswana

Abstract

Africa has been witnessing rapid changes in the social
landscape over the past ten years. Processes of globalization
and the advancement of new technologies have been impacting
on local social networks significantly. This paper moves away
from an analysis of networks as defining social space, towards
an ethnography of linking and connections. What does the link
ing entail and how does this encompass moments of change?
We consider two linking technologies of different natures—the
mobile phone and the passport-to-life—and assess what these
technologies link. Central in this analysis is how linking con
nections possess agency in producing social change.

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Published

2022-03-16

How to Cite

de Bruijn, M., & van Dijk, R. (2022). Connecting and Change in African Societies: Examples of "Ethnographies of Linking" in Anthropology. Anthropologica, 54(1), 45–59. Retrieved from https://cas-sca.journals.uvic.ca/index.php/anthropologica/article/view/931

Issue

Vol. 54 No. 1 (2012): Anthropology in the Era of New Information and Communication Technologies: New Explorations

Section

Thematic Section:

License

Copyright (c) 2012 Mirjam de Bruijn & Rijk van Dijk

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