Anthropology students engage in field research that not only furthers their understanding of the discipline but also strengthens their faith.
Mentored research opportunities for students at Brigham Young University, like an anthropology field school in South Korea, provide one way for students to engage in experiential learning. It also opens the doors to seek learning by faith as students have limited time and resources to conduct research for a capstone project. The results often lead to opportunities to make a greater difference in society via presentations at academic conferences and simply offering greater resources to specific communities.
Jacob Gilbert, anthropology junior from Bountiful, Utah, presented his research at the American Anthropological Association annual meeting in New Orleans as well as the BYU Asian Studies Student Symposium to bring to light issues he discovered while studying the care and stories of elderly Koreans. His classmate Shauna Wilson, an anthropology minor from Provo, Utah, also continues her efforts to help connect Koreans who have been adopted internationally through her research that began during the field school experience.
The field school in South Korea is one of the many location-based ethnographic field schools offered by the Anthropology Department in the BYU College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences. Every two years Greg Thompson, professor of anthropology, leads a group of students to South Korea to conduct research as a part of a four-course sequence for their senior thesis.
Students prepare project proposals before going to South Korea and are expected to conduct research by joining and observing relevant communities once in the country. Thompson is by their side throughout the process teaching two classes, helping students review research methods, and advising students on their research. At the conclusion of the field school, students analyze their data and write a final paper based on their findings.
“The field school gives students the opportunity to carry out a very difficult task: to conduct their own first-hand research in a foreign country,” Thompson says.
In the Field: Jacob Gilbert
Gilbert’s research focused on who carries the responsibility to care for the elderly in Korea. Many live in poverty and the issue is a growing national concern as the elderly population swells and the birthrate declines. His research was also influenced by the term he learned in an anthropology course about the culture, language, and history of Korea: filial piety. This Confucian term means showing love, service, and respect toward elders.
Gilbert spent many days conducting his research by speaking to and learning the stories of elderly Koreans at a park he was led to by Thompson, and a soup kitchen found via a translator who served a mission in Korea. Though at first he was worried about knowing where to go, he prayed and felt God guide him.
Going into his research, Gilbert expected to find that the elderly would believe their families should care for them, acting in filial piety. However, he found that the elderly did not want to be a burden to their loved ones and the younger generation. Gilbert observed that many of the elderly felt the government had a responsibility to care for them “in a relationship like filial piety,” given the hardships they have endured and their role in building South Korea.
One day in particular, Gilbert felt prompted to go to the park he frequented most during the trip even though it was raining. While there, he observed elderly Koreans showing up in the park to get food assistance, despite the rain. This demonstrated the dire circumstances of South Korea's elderly and became the narrative introduction Gilbert used for his thesis.
“That proved to be an important part of my research that I wouldn’t have known if not for
the Spirit,” Gilbert says.
Although he faced challenges, such as not knowing the area or speaking the language, he said he felt guided by the Lord.
“It was like piece by piece,” he says.
In the Field: Shauna Wilson
Wilson was born in Korea and at the age of five she was adopted by a family in Provo, Utah. As she pondered what to study during the field school, her thoughts were directed to internationally adopted Koreans like herself.
Her research focused on how Korean adoptees, who have been scattered across the globe for decades, are now searching for their family history records and biological families, while also connecting with other Korean adoptees both online and in person.
Wilson discovered a lack of resources and representation available to help adoptees find genealogical records. She says that many adoptees seek a sense of identity and purpose, and because they come from other places, they may feel as though a part of themselves is missing. But through genealogical records, Wilson says, “we have discovered our roots,” and adoptees are given a better sense of identity.
To conduct her research, Wilson needed to find, join, and participate in communities of Korean adoptees. But to do this, she had to rely on the Lord.
“It felt like the whole eight weeks of Korea field school was an intensive measure of me being willing to be open to the Spirit,” Wilson says.
She adopted the mindset of a Korean adoptee looking for records. One of the first places she thought to look was the Seoul Korea FamilySearch Center. However, she felt prompted not to go. At first, she felt confused, but was eventually led to other communities of Korean adoptees and resources at places like the National Assembly, a public library, and an event specifically for Korean adoptees.
At these places and events, Wilson would participate with and observe Korean adoptees as well as interview them about their experiences in searching for family records in Korea.
“Because I am an adoptee myself, I fully participated while also observing. It was an interesting experience trying to be immersed and at the same time observe how adoptees and myself navigate the spaces we were in together,” Wilson says.
While at a public library conducting research, Wilson ended up finding records of her own Korean ancestors. She also found a floor completely dedicated to Jokbo — Korean family history records. During one of her library visits, she was fortunate enough to see where the physical family history records that the Jokbo draw from are kept.
“I don’t see just paper here — I felt people within that room. I would have never experienced that, had I not shown up to this library,” she says.
This experience served as a sacred and personal affirmation for her to continue her work when she hit roadblocks, and also a reminder that the work she was doing could help Korean adoptees reunite with their ancestors.
Going Forward
While Wilson hasn’t yet published or presented her research in the same way Gilbert has, her research success is instead defined with a new purpose. She has decided to help Korean adoptees connect with their roots by using the skills she is developing as a communications major. She has now connected with individuals from FamilySearch and leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Korea to continue this work.
“I wouldn't be doing anything of what I am doing now had I not been directed to do so,” she says.
Gilbert is currently working on his senior thesis and will present at the BYU Anthropology Senior Symposium in April. He is also applying to law school and plans to be an attorney to aid those who do not have a voice.
Thompson is grateful for the educational opportunities BYU provides students that, with faculty support, help them engage in difficult experiential learning encounters that require them to confront the complexity of the real world.
“It is a special treat for me to be a part of this mission,” Thompson says.