Connecting with Communities: My Anthropological Lens

Connecting with communities through an anthropological lens has been a driving force in my career. Understanding people deeply and building meaningful relationships is key to creating impactful solutions.

When I engage with a community, I start by immersing myself in their daily lives. I observe, listen, and participate, gaining insights into their cultural practices, values, and challenges. This approach helps me understand the underlying factors that shape their behaviors and needs.

I’ve conducted ethnographies on domestic violence in courtrooms to create grounded theories on the relationship between violence and the state. In Mexico, I explored the use of psychedelics and the intersection of power and medicine. My research on emotional abuse and female graduation rates provides insights into educational barriers. Additionally, I’ve studied, with deep interest in how corporations can benefit from understanding the distrust in banking and its impact on purchasing power in Mexico.

In user experience research, full ethnographies are largely impractical due to time constraints. However, I’ve conducted focused studies on economic culture and monthly subscription behaviors that impact prestigious brands like Xbox, Netflix, and Spotify. These mini-ethnographies help uncover the cultural factors influencing consumer purchasing behavior.

The benefits of this target-market-cultural-understanding approach are immense. Companies that value community insights can create products and services that truly resonate with their target audiences and they can solve many of the barriers to not only expanding their customer’s purchasing power, but in the process building trust, which builds long-lasting relationships.

I cannot overemphasize the importance of these relationships. One thing American companies truly need to understand is that in emerging markets like Mexico, people value relationships over transactions and you can see it everyday in virtually every exchange. People are more important than money and they need to know that you fully understand that fact. 

My extensive global experience and my personal interest in people combined with my strong research training allows me to connect with and understand communities on a deep level, ensuring that my work is inclusive and impactful. 

Let’s explore how my anthropological insights can strengthen your community connections and drive meaningful impact.