The Four-Level Analysis Approach: A New Methodology in Enterprise Anthropology

Abstract

The international recognition of enterprise anthropology (EA) as a sub-discipline of anthropology in 2009 launched the fourth anthropological evolution, in which Chinese anthropologists and ethnologists played a leading role in transforming the long-term tradition of following the Westernized research paradigm in anthropological research and studies. Among the important contributions of Chinese anthropologists is the proposal of the Four-Level Analysis Approach, a new methodology to study enterprises through the multiple layers of analysis from the macro, meso, and micro perspectives. This paper is intended to elaborate the theoretical and conceptual frameworks of the methodology, multi-level analysis of enterprises and its applications in research and studies in Chinese enterprises. The future development of this methodology is also discussed in the article.