spirit possession: theoretical perspectivesWhile an ample ethnographic literature on spirit possession exists, most of the published studies employ two well-worn analytic frameworks. On the one hand, functionalist approaches, treating spirit possession as a cultural form of conflict management that provides a sanctioned "safety-valve" through which powerless individuals may assert themselves, are presented in studies by Harris (1957), Mischel and Mischel(1958). Freed and Freed (1964). Lewis (1971). Frankel (1976), Crapanzano (19771, and Obeyesekere (1977). On the other hand, the meaningfulness of possession in its cultural context i s the focus of studies such as those by Stirrat (1977) and Claus (1979). which examine the collective representations that underlie and shape possession behavior. Lambek (1980), however, suggests a stimulating departure from these standard lines of analysis in viewing possession as a system of communication based on a minimal triad: host, spirit, and intermediary.Our interest is in spirit possession in relation to communication processes among individuals with diverse understandings about their social world. Given that no social actors can be expected t o share exactly the same meanings and interpretations of events, it can be asked how competing definitions of reality articulate t o produce a performance of spirit possession. We propose to examine how social actors with plural cognitions structure their communication to create and sustain spirit possession events. To do so, we focus on the communication process through which definition of and response t o spirit possession is organized within a context of cultural pluralism.Wallace (1970) argues that shared meanings, values, or motives are not a fundamental prerequisite of culture. He rejects the all too often unquestioned assumption that cognitive sharing or homogeneity is the basis of patterned social interaction. Social actors can reThis study is concerned with how diverse definitions of spirit possession events in a factory are organized into predictable equivalence structures. A model of communication is utilized to show how information about possession is exchanged through reciprocal role behaviors at the primary level and through interpretive accounts at the secondary level. This approach emphasizes the complex processes involved in the communication of possession events. [Malay culture, spirit possession, communication]
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