From american-anthropologist-skills
Structures theoretical arguments for American Anthropologist manuscripts by developing portable concepts and reflexive positioning. Use when analysis needs clearer conceptual payoff.
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/american-anthropologist-skills:amanthro-theory-buildingThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
At AA, evidence is not a contribution until it is attached to an **argument other anthropologists can
At AA, evidence is not a contribution until it is attached to an argument other anthropologists can use elsewhere. This skill turns fieldwork, material, or measurements into theory: explicit concepts, mechanisms or interpretive logics, scope conditions, and positionality, in the idiom appropriate to your subfield. Thick description is necessary at AA but not sufficient — the "so what" must travel.
Ask: Could an anthropologist in another subfield import this concept/mechanism to their own problem?
If yes, you have a four-field contribution. If the argument only works for your exact case, tighten it
into a general logic or reframe (back to amanthro-topic-selection).
【Core claim】one sentence
【Concept】the key analytic, defined
【Mechanism / interpretive logic】the social process
【Evidence link】what grounds it / what would disconfirm it
【Positionality】how the author's relation to the field bears on the reading
【Scope + portability】where it holds / who else can use it
【Next】amanthro-research-design
../../resources/external_tools.md — concept-mapping, qualitative-analysis, and comparative tooling../../resources/official-source-map.md — AA scope and contribution expectationsnpx claudepluginhub brycewang-stanford/awesome-journal-skills --plugin american-anthropologist-skillsBuilds the conceptual/theoretical argument of a Current Anthropology manuscript into an agenda-setting, all-fields contribution. Use when data are rich but conceptual payoff is thin, or a reviewer said the paper is undertheorized.
Builds portable theoretical arguments for ASR manuscripts. Defines mechanisms, scope conditions, and concepts across quantitative, ethnographic, comparative-historical, and computational methods.
Positions an American Anthropologist manuscript against the literature for four-field legibility and citational politics. Useful when drafting introductions or responding to reviewer feedback.