Paper short abstract:

This paper reviews the development and formation of anthropological ethics against general social change and further explains the particularities of Taiwan anthropology in various times.

Paper long abstract:

This paper examines the multiple origins of anthropology in Taiwan and its current development through the lens of its ethical concerns. Taiwan has been relatively muted in its disciplinary debates over ethical issues, in contrast with the intermittent and occasionally heated discussions on ethics in American and British anthropologies. However, a new trend in globalizing local studies at the turn of the century has also prompted Taiwan anthropology to not only adopt Western-derived theories but also meet international standards of addressing professional ethics. Such new concerns have not only placed anthropological ethics on the time table of institutionalization, they also call for new attentions to research on social issues. This paper reviews the development and formation of anthropological ethics against general social change and further explains the particularities of Taiwan anthropology in various times.