Back
| Semester | spring semester 2020 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers |
Eva Kocher (eva.kocher@unibas.ch)
Melina Rutishauser (melina.rutishauser@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | Insurances are amongst the most important financial products of modern times, shaping not only national and international economies, but also the ways societies deal with risk and insecurities. Given the current and historical fragility in many African contexts and its role in the Global Political Economy since decolonisation, it is astonishing how little social sciences and humanities have contributed to understand the formation of African insurance markets, until recently. Both social anthropology and history offer a variety of perspectives to address how societies deal with risk and build social protection. We propose to look more closely into insurance-models in the Nigerian, Cameroonian and Tanzanian context since independence within our course, with the aim to understand modern insurances, social protection and risk management from historical and anthropological perspectives. Insurances are part of and linked with diverse discourses as for example financialisation, cooperation, social protection, solidarity, trust etc., which are embedded in global, regional and local contexts. How can we understand insurances, social protection and risk management in an African context? How have private insurances and health coverage evolved in these particular contexts? What is the role of international corporations, organisations and globalisation in the promotion of insurances (e.g. health insurances in the case of Universal Health Coverage)? During the course we will engage with past and ongoing research projects as well as theoretical reflections concerning these and related questions and topics. This course offers students therefore the opportunity to think critically about interdisciplinary approaches to the field of risk management, social protection and insurance as well as to reflect on the methodical diversity existing to address this particular thematic field. |
| Learning objectives | Students will - Get an overview of key literature on insurance, risk management and social protection from a historical and social anthropology perspective with focus on Africa. - familiarize with different disciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches to the thematic field of insurance in the African context through reading and discussions of current and past research projects. - be able to differ among theoretical and methodological approaches to the thematic field of insurance in the African context as well as to assess and contextualise them in a critical manner. |
| Bibliography | All required literature will be available on ADAM. In the program, which will be uploaded on ADAM, the compulsory reading for every session will be indicated. Furthermore, a list of literature for additional reading will be uploaded. • Borscheid,Peter; Haueter, Niels Viggo (eds.): World Insurance. The Evolution of a Global Risk Network. Oxford 2012. • Dao, A. and Mulligan, J. (2015). Toward an Anthropology of Insurance and Health Reform: An Introduction to the Special Issue. Medical anthropology quarterly. |
| Admission requirements | The number of participants is limited to 30 people. The places are assigned according to date of enrollment and subject of study. Priority will be given to the subjects listed under "modules". |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Modul: Analysefelder: Ideen - Diskurse - Wissen (Master's degree program: European History (Start of studies before 01.08.2018)) Modul: Archive / Medien / Theorien (Bachelor's degree subject: History) Modul: Fields: Governance and Politics (Master's degree program: African Studies) Modul: Fields: Public Health and Social Life (Master's degree program: African Studies) Modul: Forschung und Praxis (Master's degree subject: East European History) Modul: Profil: Moderne (Master's degree program: European History (Start of studies before 01.08.2018)) Modul: Reflexion, Methodik, Praxis (Master's degree program: European History in Global Perspective) Modul: Sachthemen der Ethnologie (Bachelor's degree subject: Anthropology) Modul: Theorie (Master's degree subject: History) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Regular presence, reading of the compulsory texts, active participation in discussions and an individual assignment. One of the following assignments can be chosen: a) To write a reading response paper (What are the main arguments of the text? How is the text linked to our general topic? What have been striking, interesting, remarkable aspects, and arguments in the text?) and phrase three questions to be discussed in the respective session. The reading response has to be shared with the organisers in advance. b) Submitting a protocol of a session reflecting the discussion in the course and the respective readings, as well as linking it with current debates and/or personal experiences. The protocol has to be shared two weeks later on ADAM. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Ethnologie |