Find out why the culture of dependency in US exists ...
592468
Find out why the culture of dependency in US exists and is really growing.  My book tells you WHY the government cannot stop the culture of dependency.  The government, regardless of political party, survives and thrives off of it.  The cause of the dependency state is deficit-based thinking.  Learn how to end the dependency state, one family and community at a time.
1986511
This book helps you understand how to reverse the corrosive effects of our consumer culture and it detrimental effects on our freedom
3675550
This book examines an important cultural phenomenon.  As the Latin population of our country grows, it is important to understand the "Latin experience" in America; in this case, from the female perspective.  Latins and non-Latins (women and men) will benefit from the insight.
2679192
I found it interesting to read about this often overlooked subpopulation. My family branches off into this part of the country and those of us who migrated to the west coast lived a very different life than those who stayed in the Midwest. Im not sure like he mentions what the conclusions is - there isn't really a policy that can pull those in the situation out, except for a person who believes in your future.
1097318
As  American students, we don't receive much education on East Asian cultures. The only time Asian countries are mentioned is when we study WWII, Japanese concentration camps, the Chinese Exclusion Act, etc. I found it interesting to learn about the conflicts Asian countries have among each other and that Taiwan isn't even recognized as a country by everyone.

One of the most interesting questions I found was about international students and their cars. On Michigan States campus, it has been a source of conflict between some American students and displays of wealth, which may be born out of jealousy or the belief that displays of wealth is synonymous with displays of superiority.

It was also interesting the number of misconceptions addressed that I had about Asians growing up that have disappeared years ago. Those misconceptions are the same that I see on television and in movies as well.
3868773
If you are raising children outside your home Nation, this book will help you understand and assist your children with their unique experiences living in the invisible "third" culture.  If you or your spouse grew up in a Country foreign to their parents, this book may help illuminate emotions and behaviors that never quite made sense before (especially from the perspective of those of us who always lived in the same house!).  This book is in english, but it is not about Americans only, but anyone from one Nation who spend several years or more of childhood in a second Nation.  Should be a staple in every military, ambassadorial, or mission complex library!
4519841
Values are an important aspect of culture, but have not been the subject of sustained enquiry in the social sciences.  Here D'Andrade takes up a quantitative-based study of values among "Americans ..., Vietnamese refugees in the United States ..., and native-born Japanese, primarily living in Japan" (D'Andrade 2008:22).

D'Andrade acknowledges that using quantitative data from questionnaires to do a cross-cultural study of values has its limitations, but he argues that it has virtues too and our understanding of values is at such a stage where the contribution from such research would be important.  His discussion of how his measures were constructed is also, as usual, thorough and forthright.  Ditto his methods of analysis.  Much can be learned from these two sections, and together they demonstrate the challenge of doing good quantitative research into cultural phenomenon.  This is no simple ask-and-tally procedure.

Although there are some surprising findings -- for example, the Japanese appeared more like the  Americans than the Vietnamese on the individualism versus collectivism dimension -- for D'Andrade and others working on the project the greater surprise seems to be that the value differences were so small.  This leads him to conclude -- and I may be missing something here -- that the "values" of the questionnaire were too general; what counts as satisfaction of that value for a given person in a given instance is more informative.

I think that sums up the limitations of questionnaire research in a nutshell.  It's why we do ethnography (if you're an anthropologist) -- although, as D'Andrade noted, that takes more time, money, resources, ...

So what would the next step look like?  One example is Adrie Kusserow's compelling American Individualisms (2004), which shows how different social groups may share the value of "individualism" but give different meanings to the word/concept, based on their (class) experiences.  Note that these are all "Americans."  Taking this one step further, if you will, Claudia Strauss shows how individuals learn, hold, and use different, even discordant, value-schemes to judge behavior in different contexts (see her chapter in Quinn's Finding Culture in Talk, 2005).

I bought this book on the strength of the author's reputation, his fine The Development of Cognitive Anthropology (1995), and the book's title (I study Japan).  I confess I was surprised at the approach he used here.  I need more convincing on the subject of generalizing from small samples to large societies, for example.  I would be more interested in seeing how values emerge in a more narrowly defined context, perhaps discussion of a specific moral dilemma (a la Lawrence Kohlberg, Carol Gilligan, Naomi Quinn, or Claudia Strauss).  In general, I find the approach of Strauss and Quinn more useful.  All the same, I was glad to see this work published, because D'Andrade's honest scholarship really clarified for me the limitations of this type of research for this type of topic.  And he has left us with some new questions.  So if your library has a copy you might want to give this a look.

Recommended Works:

Kusserow:
http://www.amazon.com/American-Individualisms-Rearing-Neighborhoods-Culture/dp/1403964807

Quinn:
http://www.amazon.com/Finding-Culture-Talk-Collection-Methods/dp/1403969159/ref=cm_cr_wr_img

Strauss and Quinn:
http://www.amazon.com/Cognitive-Cultural-Publications-Psychological-Anthropology/dp/052159541X/ref=cm_cr_wr_img

D'Andrade and Strauss:
http://www.amazon.com/Motives-Cultural-Publications-Psychological-Anthropology/dp/0521412331/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1269315397&sr=1-1

D'Andrade:
http://www.amazon.com/Development-Cognitive-Anthropology-Roy-DAndrade/dp/0521459761/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1269315308&sr=1-1
2830310
In my quest to learn/understand/sort out, this dvd brings to light 'who' is undermining and destroying the United States.  Our freedoms are being taken piece by piece, our quality of life is being taxed beyond repair and we the people are becoming we the subjects.
Mr. Daniels gives his name and intro to this informative dvd but it's not about him.  The purpose is to open the eyes of those who care about the United States of America.  Watch this, share it with your friends and family.  It's an eye opener!
4557111
The author helpfully challenges our sense of cultural superiority and also gives tools by which we can understand and enter into cultures different from our own.  A must read for those who desire to effectively serve within another culture.
434273
This book is a must read for Americans who want to succeed in working with non-Americans and who want to improve themselves in working right here at home.  "Working with Americans" is a book that provides a global perspective for everyone who comes in contact with the American mind-set including Americans themselves. It should remind everyone that "globalization" is not about doing things the "American way" but about doing things that respect and honor cultural differences.  That is the first step in building personal and professional relationships.
2857851
Great book for those who want to better understand the origins of American culture.
3748882
If you happen to be wondering why the United States is where it is today in 2016, read this book!
107550
Interesting look into a sub culture in the U.S. that is probably unknown to many citizens outside the region in which the author was raised.  One distinct takeaway from the book was that "escape" from this sort of class cycle is possible.  America is still The Land of Opportunity.  Poverty, and it's family members, crime, drug abuse, domestic violence, illegitimacy, ignorance, are not a life sentence.
2982793
I'm of Indian American descent and while traveling, even I've often wondered about the phenomenon of Indian American motels and hotels.  I found out about this book after hearing about it through both the WSJ and NPR- which rarely agree on anything.

This is just one of those books that needed to be written- half of the motels in the United States are owned by a single minority group.  It is somewhat similar to the Korean-American owners of bodegas or Chinese-American laundromats in NYC.  This book answers how a single minority group (Gujratis within a minority group of South Asians) come to exert such industry dominance for an entire country.

The book is slightly scholarly at times- but perhaps I've just gotten too used to glib Malcolm Gladwell-esque pithy observations.  But the amount of research and the quality of writing is very clear- and it's well worth the time to anyone interested in American exceptionalism, entrepreneurship and American success stories.
551823
Appreciated the outsiders' perspective of the authors, one American, one British, covering many aspects of parenting from childbirth to teens sexual practices. One major difference, more implied than explicitly stated, between the Dutch and Americans raising of children is the government support given to families in the Netherlands.  So, whether there is a transfer of practices possible in the US without similar support is questionable, my most important take aways that are transferable are the giving children freedom to roam the neighborhood, a sort of free range childhood, (there was one report in the major news that an American mom who was cited for letting her children play unattended in a neighborhood park) and the natural conversations about their sexuality throughout childhood so that sex among teens is informed and safe sex.  One huge difference that is probably not transferable that I admired, having retired from public school teaching, is the delay of academic emphasis until after the primary grades and the de-emphasis on competition for the highest grades.  Rather, the emphasis is on play and social interaction.  Can't see Americans giving up on their kids being the smartest, but maybe we would have happier, less stressed kids.  Food for thought for raising happy kids.
818295
Economic hardship pushes people to the psychological and physical margins of society - isolated from friends and relatives, shunted into dilapidated trailer parks, shanties, or the streets, removed from banks and stores, transit systems, and cultural institutions. They withdraw from all but the most unavoidable social interactions. Our political process is increasingly beholden to powerful financial interests, our economy increasingly revolves not around making things but shuffling money and sending jobs to other nations, and advertising what is mostly made elsewhere. Just prior to the 2008 financial crash, Federal Reserve data showed average households spending nearly 19% of disposable income servicing debt. By the end of 2010, per the U.S. Census Bureau, 15.1% of Americans lived below the poverty line, an increase of about 15 million since the start of the century.

In May, 2012, UNICEF reported that of the world's developed countries, the U.S. had the 2nd highest rate of child poverty, over 23%, exceeded only by Romania.

Poverty is not THE problem or the source of THE problem - it is evidence of a problem. Moynihan believed a 'culture of poverty' existed among African-Americans, characterized by dependency, sexual profligancy, lack of ambition, and violence, and that government had to figure out how to change poor people's behaviors.

Abramsky's recommendations, however, are not credible. One is to establish a public works trust fund (1%, split between employees and employers), and educational opportunity fund of .5% (again split) for college funding, and a financial transaction tax and energy profit tax to support low-income children in high poverty schools. Unfortunately, these remedies have been tried before and not worked.
1603890
This book, Sugarball, dives in and explores the relation that the people of the Dominican Republic have with United States in the context of baseball. The author, Alan Klein, argues that the Dominican Republic is a country underdeveloped, exploited, abused, ravaged in poverty, destitution, and most importantly inundated with American culture; but yet still finds a way to express their independence and nationality through baseball. He further argues that Dominican Baseball, though an American game with American influences has managed to survive with a distinctly Dominican feel; and this feeling is a source of resistance to American hegemony.
How does one prove cultural resistance against cultural hegemony?  Klein attempts it through insightful historical investigation and related to personal observations of behavior with in the culture.  However, his premise is inherently intangible.  His evidence lies not in overt actions, but in the passive behaviors of the Dominican fan.  Behaviors that seen like conscious efforts to behave un-American.  If one were to point out any of form of resistance one would not see resistance, it is only when taken in the cultural construct as a whole that one begins to see Klein's point.
Because of the inherently intangibly nature of culture, Klein fails to prove clear cultural resistance, rather he succeeds in establishing the conflict that Dominicans have as both needing  to assimilate with American culture in order to gain a better life, and their need for a since of national superiority, and independence free from American dominance.  Klein essentially establishes the existence of a love-hate relationship through the game of baseball in the Dominican Republic.