Paper short abstract:

Tobacco use has become an issue of global health as the risk factor of Noncommunicable diseases. Medical anthropologists have been fulfilling ethnographic researches to tackle smoking issues. In these processes, a physician-anthropologist faces theoretical and practical conflicts.

Paper long abstract:

WHO recently announced the global plan to control Noncommunicable diseases(NCDs). Tobacco use, one of the common risk factors of NCDs seems to converge disadvantaged groups as well as low and middle income countries. These unequal distributions are likely to be strengthened via international tobacco companies and disproportionate tobacco control policies amongst countries.

Medical anthropologists fulfilled ethnographic researches to investigate tobacco industries and relating national health policies in Southeast Asia and South America. Simultaneously 'tailored smoking cessation programs' to solve the inequity of smoking rates between classes have been pursued. During these projects, however, a 'physician-anthropologist' inevitably faces the theoretical and practical conflicts

First of all, a physician-anthropologist has to confront the theoretical friction between biomedical 'etic' views and anthropological 'emic' understandings. Following biomedicine, a physician seems to have two assumptions about smoking. One is 'smoking is mainly based on nicotine addiction' and another is 'smoking is unhealthy'. In contrast, an anthropologist understands smoking having diverse utilities including physical, emotional, social and symbolic aspects.

A physician-anthropologist will also have a practical conflict while doing one's fieldwork especially amongst marginalised smoking groups. The researcher have to reveal one's career as a doctor following ethical guidelines of 'overt' research. This identity itself often evokes a sense of social inferiority of participants being attached with stigma about tobacco use. Although it depends on how much the researcher reveals one's subjectivity as a doctor and convinces biomedical findings, participants may do performances to hide their stigmatic behaviours or resist biomedical views.