WRITING: Freelisting

Freelisting
and
Constrained Listing

    • "The freelist technique is used to elicit the elements or members of a "cultural domain"

      • For domains that have a name or are easily described, the technique is very simple:

        just ask a set of informants to "list all the members of the domain"

      • In the Anthropology of Food class Pre-Assessment task, for example, people are asked to list "non-poisonous foods you would not eat"

        • In this case the "cultural domain" is "non-poisonous foods you would not eat"

        • And it is called a "freelisting" because the question allows you to name as many or as few foods as you want

    • A "constrained listing" would set some limits on the list

      • for e.g., "Name ten non-poisonous foods you would not eat"

 Sage).