An anthropologist, folklorist, and literary critic besides being a marketing professor, Alf H. Walle takes a refreshingly interdisciplinary look at the impact of modern social thought upon marketing and social research. Tracing key ideas back to their intellectual roots, Walle shows how the evolution of social theory, and the controversies it has engendered, can and should transform the way marketers approach consumers. He provides a theoretic underpinning for qualitative consumer research and presents a lucid theoretical and methodological overview for qualitative methods in marketing, research that parallels what others, such as Shelby Hunt, have provided for scientific methods in marketing. His book is a provocative, thoughtful, and probing study of qualitative social theory and its important contributions to marketing and consumer research. It is of value to both practitioners and academics. Arguing that the social structural methods have been largely ignored, Walle rehabilitates this general method and compares it to poststructural alternatives.

Walle shows that to understand the evolution of modern social theory, one must come to grips with the work of three towering pioneers: Immanuel Kant, Friedrich Hegel, and Karl Marx, and that researchers must understand and appreciate the contributions and influence of pioneers in order to avoid the myopic vision of our own time. Praising Hegel's metaphor of cultures as living organisms and his forging of the concept we now call National Character, Walle points to Hegel as the pioneering social structuralist and as the man who, as a negative example, inspired the poststructuralists to action. Walle ends with a well reasoned analysis of poststructural thought in marketing-consumer research, and suggests that conflict theory--an alternative to poststructural methods that evolved from social structural roots--is often more appropriate than poststructural analysis in marketing and consumer research. Relating both conflict theory and poststructural analysis to the actual needs of marketing consumer researchers, "Exotic Visions in Marketing Theory and Practice" provides unique, practical insights for those who teach market research as well as practitioners who pursue it for a living.

Walle surveys the qualitative social sciences and humanities for instances where by design or accident they have had important things to say on the theory and practice of marketing and consumer research. He sees them as alternatives to the scientific method and quantitative analysis -- complements but not surrogates. He describes examples of humanistic analysis that readers without special grounding in the humanities can grasp, a discussion of specific humanistic methods and how they relate to marketing research and management, a view of the intellectual roots that show scholars what these tools can accomplish (and their limitations as well), ending with a provocative appendix that distinguishes humanistic empiricism from other systems of thought and defines clearly its usefulness in marketing. Written in an entertaining, informal style, Walle's book is thought provoking, robust, and filled with insights that will give marketing and consumer researchers an unusual view of new strategies and techniques to do even the most familiar tasks better.

Walle reminds the reader that the humanities and qualitative social sciences offer a diverse and conflicting array of theories and methods, but he insists that their specific methods must not be embraced outside an appropriate context. Although marketers might prefer universally applicable methods that can be routinely plugged into any problem at hand, humanistic methods must be applied with an unusually subtle awareness of what they can and can not accomplish. He also shows how they are not merely analytical techniques, but embody a wide array of substantive knowledge as well, knowledge that must and can be recognized and considered. In his review and critique of the existing marketing research literature he shows that without guidance from the substantive thought derived from the humanities and qualitative social sciences, marketers can become trapped in counterproductive analysis and make significant errors in judgment. Well illustrated with stories, anecdotes, and his own research in the fields he is writing about, Walle's book is as useful as it is entertaining.

Qualitative methods of business research are emerging as vital tools. Business anthropology is at the heart of this movement. Although many recent books provide nuts-and-bolts advice regarding the field, "Rethinking Business Anthropology: Cultural Strategies in Marketing and Management" discusses the intellectual traditions from which the discipline has emerged and how this heritage opens up new vistas for business research. Gaining these broader perspectives is essential as business anthropologists transcend being mere research technicians and seek to influence organizational policies and strategies.

This group of essays is written to provide a series of suggestions to Native people who seek to deal with alcoholism from the perspective of their unique heritages and with an understanding that the pressures to which Native traditions and societies have been subjected may trigger dysfunctional behavior, such as excessive drinking. In doing so, I link the work, life, and example of Handsome Lake, an Iroquois leader of the 18th/early 19th century to strategies of recovery that are geared towards contemporary Native people. The goal is to provide a useful set of tools and perspectives regarding Native people and their dysfunctional behavior, such as alcoholism. This section concludes with discussions of how the method can be used in both therapy and in self-help groups. I present this book as one way in which Native people may be able to embrace their cultural heritage as they seek to recover from alcoholism. Inspired by the example and teachings of Handsome Lake, I have updated his perspectives and explained them in terms of modern sociological and psychological theories. By doing so, a strategy of recovery for Native people living in the 21th century is offered.

The classic and dominant paradigm of entrepreneurship emphasizes the relatively universal and homogeneous responses of a small, but influential, minority as they make unique and breakthrough contributions. Entrepreneurs are often viewed as inspired individualists who possess the courage to "go against the grain" as they risk it all to pursue an impassioned vision. According to Joseph Schumpeter and those who build upon his seminal perspectives, such entrepreneurial individuals pursue a path of "creative destruction" that paves the way towards true and innovative progress. Today, state of the art research is tempering and transcending this classic vision by acknowledging a wider array of cultural, psychological, and environmental contexts, influences, and responses. This monograph contributes to this research stream by viewing entrepreneurs within a cultural perspective and advocating viewing entrepreneurship in "culturally competent" ways. Presenting these perspectives in a short and circumscribed volume provides an elegant and influential means of disseminating these important perspectives. Entrepreneurship and Culture expands beyond popular and conventional views of entrepreneurship and provides readers with alternative perspectives in even-handed ways. It shows the latest state of knowledge on the topic and will be of value both to advanced students, and to academics and practitioners in the fields of entrepreneurship, international business, leadership and organizational studies. Beyond the business school, this book will also be of interest to anthropology, economic development, and indigenous studies scholars.

True Believers and the Great Replacement explores the responses of segments of Western cultures who fear that changes in the racial, religious, and ethnic makeup of society threaten their way of life. The Great Replacement Theory (that suggests that the traditional character of Western society is being undermined by outsiders) is discussed. Analysed with reference to the Critical Race Theory and the 'Cancel Culture' movement, the author examines the anxieties and reactions of those who feel alienated by a world of rapid and disorienting change. Drawing upon the thought of Eric Hoffer and Emile Durkheim, these responses are discussed in terms of the concepts of Anomie and the True Believer in innovative and effective ways. Based on this analysis, strategic responses are suggested. The volume will appeal to scholars and practitioners involved with issues of race and ethnicity, business and social and cultural analysis.

The classic and dominant paradigm of entrepreneurship emphasizes the relatively universal and homogeneous responses of a small, but influential, minority as they make unique and breakthrough contributions. Entrepreneurs are often viewed as inspired individualists who possess the courage to "go against the grain" as they risk it all to pursue an impassioned vision. According to Joseph Schumpeter and those who build upon his seminal perspectives, such entrepreneurial individuals pursue a path of "creative destruction" that paves the way towards true and innovative progress. Today, state of the art research is tempering and transcending this classic vision by acknowledging a wider array of cultural, psychological, and environmental contexts, influences, and responses. This monograph contributes to this research stream by viewing entrepreneurs within a cultural perspective and advocating viewing entrepreneurship in "culturally competent" ways. Presenting these perspectives in a short and circumscribed volume provides an elegant and influential means of disseminating these important perspectives. Entrepreneurship and Culture expands beyond popular and conventional views of entrepreneurship and provides readers with alternative perspectives in even-handed ways. It shows the latest state of knowledge on the topic and will be of value both to advanced students, and to academics and practitioners in the fields of entrepreneurship, international business, leadership and organizational studies. Beyond the business school, this book will also be of interest to anthropology, economic development, and indigenous studies scholars.

Although competitive intelligence and contemporary marketing research evolved from different intellectual traditions, both are indebted to qualitative methods of research and analysis. Walle shows that by merging their strategies in relevant ways, both fields grow even more robust and responsive to the needs of business clients and decision makers. Written by a noted humanist/social scientist with a wide ranging background in competitive intelligence and marketing research, this book can be viewed as a breakthrough. It is the first book to juxtapose, compare, and integrate the qualitative methods of marketing research with those of competitive intelligence. Among its many important features is a discussion of how to conduct a qualitative audit that assesses the degree to which an organization is able to take full advantage of qualitative analytic techniques.

Walle reminds us that the qualitative social sciences and humanities have a strong tradition within intelligence, one that dates back to World War II. Although innovations from the qualitative social sciences and humanities were developed 50 years ago, they were allowed to atrophy as the principle researchers of the time re-entered civilian life. Walle updates and revives them, and shows readers how to do it themselves for their own business purposes. The book reintroduces the World War II-era culture at a distance method that applied qualitative social sciences and humanities to intelligence, but updates them in terms of advances that have taken place since then. It also provides useful means to merge competitive intelligence and contemporary marketing research in ways that will result in collaboration and mutual understanding. Finally, Walle provides an appendix that discusses how to recruit and motivate researchers, whose training comes out of the humanities but whose contributions to business will prove of exceptional value. This is an important new resource for marketing practitioners and graduate level students and their teachers.

Biblical scholarship, like many other disciplines, has become increasingly isolated. As a result, the field has not borrowed as much from other areas of scholarship as it could have and has exerted a smaller impact upon the larger intellectual community. A significant portion of Pagans and Practitioners deals with how the New Testament can be read as a rebuttal of Pagan rivals. In doing so, greater linkages with other disciplines are reestablished. Discussion of how the tools developed by Biblical criticism can serve other, secular disciplines are provided. Collectively, this book explores how Biblical criticism can exert a greater impact upon the intellectual world.

Social, economic, and technological changes disrupt many Indigenous, ethnic, and rural communities even when offering progress. Under these conditions, social and psychological dysfunctions are likely to emerge. This book provides insights regarding how to anticipate, prevent, and, when necessary, provide mitigation strategies to communities and individuals who suffer as a result. This book, the first of its kind, provides an overview of strategic and policy issues involving the relationship between change and dysfunction, enabling the reader to more effectively deal with potentially hurtful influences in proactive, equitable, and culturally sensitive ways. After providing a theoretical overview, methods for anticipating the hurtful impacts of change are discussed, along with techniques for mitigating its negative effects upon communities and individuals. Learning objectives and discussion questions are included with each chapter, and the book can serve as a text for courses on indigenous economic development, Native studies, culturally appropriate business, and culturally competent therapy. It can also be used as a professional handbook for practitioners working with communities affected by these issues.

This workbook is designed to be used with Recovery the Native Way, a short book in this series that deals with the impact that your Native heritage might have on your substance abuse as well as how your traditions might contribute to a fruitful and positive recovery. A person's culture and its importance to emotional health are emphasized. When their way of life is weakened or when people lose touch with it, pain can result. This suffering may lead to substance abuse. If, on the other hand, people have a good relationship with their culture, it can be a source of comfort and strength that can help them to cope and recover. The goal of Recovery the Native Way and this workbook is to deal with how cultural issues can lead both to substance abuse and recovery. The ideas presented largely reflect the experiences of Handsome Lake, the nineteenth century leader who overcame alcoholism and helped his tribe to do the same. Because this book is inspired by the experiences of actual Native people who have successful overcame addiction, I hope it will ring true and help you. By using this workbook when reading Recovery the Native Way, you can better understand yourself and your behavior.This is a key to recovery. Specific exercises in this workbook correspond to chapters in Recovery the Native Way. You will read a chapter from the book and then use the workbook to clarify your personal feelings. There are no right or wrong answers as long as you are honest and true to yourself. If you respond truthfully and carefully, the effort can be a very useful tool of your recovery. Most basically, the workbook will help you better understand your Native heritage, the mainstream culture, and the relationship between the two. Work hard and good luck.

Social, economic, and technological changes disrupt many Indigenous, ethnic, and rural communities even when offering progress. Under these conditions, social and psychological dysfunctions are likely to emerge. This book provides insights regarding how to anticipate, prevent, and, when necessary, provide mitigation strategies to communities and individuals who suffer as a result. This book, the first of its kind, provides an overview of strategic and policy issues involving the relationship between change and dysfunction, enabling the reader to more effectively deal with potentially hurtful influences in proactive, equitable, and culturally sensitive ways. After providing a theoretical overview, methods for anticipating the hurtful impacts of change are discussed, along with techniques for mitigating its negative effects upon communities and individuals. Learning objectives and discussion questions are included with each chapter, and the book can serve as a text for courses on indigenous economic development, Native studies, culturally appropriate business, and culturally competent therapy. It can also be used as a professional handbook for practitioners working with communities affected by these issues.

In recent years, there has been a growing awareness that Native clients who suffer from substance abuse often face challenges that are distinct from those experienced by the mainstream population. For a number of years, I have been involved in research involving Native alcoholism and I have recently published a book on the subject titled The Path of Handsome Lake: A Model of Recovery for Native People. My book argues that many different Native cultures (in America and elsewhere) face similar challenges and disruptions because their cultures are often under great stress and/or because people are alienated from their heritage. The dyfunctional responses of many different Native people are similar because they are subjected to similar pressures. In a nutshell, due to contact with the outside world, Native cultures often experience disruptive transitions, and (in some instances) entire cultures or ways of life may face extinction. Under such circumstances, the culture loses the ability to support people and help them cope with the pressures of life. Cultural decline itself often causes additional trauma. Combined, these pressures can trigger dysfunction within the Native community. The obvious antidote for such maladies is to help Native substance abusers to reconnect with their heritage in positive and constructive ways. My earlier book and this one are inspired by the life and work of nineteenth century Iroquois leader Handsome Lake who developed a method to help Native people embrace their heritage as they recovered from substance abuse. Because my earlier book was scholarly and not focused on practitioner issues, using it within a therapeutic context may be difficult. Here, I adapt my ideas so they can be applied to therapy in a systematic and productive manner. The total program of therapy is presented in three volumes. The first is a short overview of the program that has been written at about a 10th-grade reading level. My goal is to provide a wide range of clients (as well as those who pursue self-help work) with an easily understood description of the program. The second document is a consumable workbook designed to be used with the reader. The workbook can be used both within the context of therapy and by those seeking strategies of self-help. The volume you are reading is a guide for therapists to consult when using this method to help Native clients. It is hoped that all three of these texts will play a significant role in the therapy and recovery of Native substance abusers.

This book is written in the belief that many Native substance abusers suffer because their cultural heritage is being swept away or because they have lost contact with it. While Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous provide wonderful leadership to millions of people, they do not deal with the pain that can arise when cultures weaken and die or when people are cut off from their heritage. While not seeking to replace tools of recovery, such as Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous, this book deals with the fact that people often lose the ability to cope when their cultures are under attack. The resulting pain can lead to substance abusers.If strengthened, however, the traditions of a people can help people regain their sobriety. The example of Handsome Lake, a Native leader who lived many years ago, demonstrates the power of tradition. Handsome Lake was an alcoholic near death who, at the last possible moment, regained his sobriety and invented a method that helped the Iroquois people overcome their alcoholism and restore their culture. This strategy was made up of two parts: reaffirming and strengthening the culture, and living a sober life while undoing past wrongs. This book is written to show how Handsome Lake's inspirational example can help today's Native people who seek recovery from substance abuse.

This group of essays is written to provide a series of suggestions to Native people who seek to deal with alcoholism from the perspective of their unique heritages and with an understanding that the pressures to which Native traditions and societies have been subjected may trigger dysfunctional behavior, such as excessive drinking. In doing so, I link the work, life, and example of Handsome Lake, an Iroquois leader of the 18th/early 19th century to strategies of recovery that are geared towards contemporary Native people. The goal is to provide a useful set of tools and perspectives regarding Native people and their dysfunctional behavior, such as alcoholism. This section concludes with discussions of how the method can be used in both therapy and in self-help groups. I present this book as one way in which Native people may be able to embrace their cultural heritage as they seek to recover from alcoholism. Inspired by the example and teachings of Handsome Lake, I have updated his perspectives and explained them in terms of modern sociological and psychological theories. By doing so, a strategy of recovery for Native people living in the 21th century is offered.

Elements of popular culture, such as literature and films, are major industries. If scholars are to fully understand how popular culture evolves and functions, techniques for dealing with the impact of business need to be factored into the analysis.
Using the history of the cowboy story from 1820 to 1970 as an extended example, Alf H. Walle combines popular culture scholarship with marketing theory to provide a hybrid analysis. Wall examines major authors and genres of Western American literature and film; he also explores why certain respected authors were unable to significantly impact the cowboy story even though their innovations were embraced by later generations. Finally Wall provides a hybrid analysis combining business and popular culture theory in an overarching analysis.