Bradd Shore (born June 14, 1945) is an American

cultural anthropologist Cultural anthropology is a branch of anthropology focused on the study of cultural variation among humans. It is in contrast to social anthropology, which perceives cultural variation as a subset of a posited anthropological constant. The portman ...

who is best known as a leading authority on

Samoan culture The traditional culture of Samoa is a communal way of life based on Fa'a Samoa, the unique socio-political culture. In Samoan culture, most activities are done together. The traditional living quarters, or '' fale'' (houses), contain no walls and ...

and a foundational theorist of the cultural models school of cognitive and psychological anthropology. He is the Goodrich C. White Professor Emeritus of

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of be ...

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

and is a former Department Chair. He is the former Director of the Emory Center for Myth and Ritual in American Life and is also a past President of th
Society for Psychological Anthropology
His 1996 monograph ''Culture in Mind: Cognition, Culture and the Problem of Meaning'' was among the first studies to link

multiculturalism The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for " ethnic pluralism", with the two terms often used interchang ...

to cognitive psychology, and was an effort to reformulate a conception of culture that could bridge the fields of

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of be ...

and the cognitive sciences. It has become a keystone text in the field of

cognitive anthropology Cognitive anthropology is an approach within cultural anthropology and biological anthropology in which scholars seek to explain patterns of shared knowledge, cultural innovation, and transmission over time and space using the methods and theor ...

. Shore's graduate research was done in Western Samoa and was focused on the local modeling of

personhood Personhood or personality is the status of being a person. Defining personhood is a controversial topic in philosophy and law and is closely tied with legal and political concepts of citizenship, equality, and liberty. According to law, only a l ...

and selfhood – with an emphasis on

ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concer ...

, conflict and social control. It resulted in his first book, ''Sala’ilua: A Samoan Mystery'' (1982), considered one of the earliest studies of ethnopsychology. He has authored dozens of scholarly articles and chapters published in numerous Journals and edited books. His most recent book is ''Shakespeare and Social Theory: The Play of Great Ideas'' (2021), which seeks to use an anthropological lens to build a bridge between

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

studies and classical

social theory Social theories are analytical frameworks, or paradigms, that are used to study and interpret social phenomena.Seidman, S., 2016. Contested knowledge: Social theory today. John Wiley & Sons. A tool used by social scientists, social theories rel ...

. He has also produced and directed a documentary film ''Family Revival: Salem Camp Meeting''. Shore received his B.A. from the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...

, and his Ph.D. in Anthropology from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

, where he studied with Marshall Sahlins and

David M. Schneider David Murray Schneider (November 11, 1918, Brooklyn, New York – October 30, 1995, Santa Cruz, California) was an American cultural anthropologist, best known for his studies of kinship and as a major proponent of the symbolic anthropology app ...

. Books ·
Shakespeare and Social Theory: The Play of Great Ideas
' (2021).
·
What Culture Means, How Culture Means
' (The Heinz Werner Lectures) (1998).
·
Culture in Mind: Cognition, Culture and the Problem of Meaning
' (1996).
·
Sala’ilua: A Samoan Mystery
' (1982).
·
New Neighbors: Pacific Islander Migration in Adaptation
' (1978) (Edited, with C. MacPherson and R. Franco). Awards and Positions Shore is the winner of the ''Emory Williams Teaching Award'', Emory’s highest award for teaching. He was the first holder of the ''Emory College Distinguished Teaching Professorship in the Sciences and Social Sciences''. He is a former Fellow (1988–89) at the

Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) is an interdisciplinary research lab at Stanford University that offers a residential postdoctoral fellowship program for scientists and scholars studying "the five core social and ...

in Palo Alto, California.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shore, Bradd 1945 births Living people American anthropologists American cognitive scientists Psychological anthropologists Emory University faculty University of Chicago alumni Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences fellows