

Emotion, childhood, and minorities in the archaeological research seminar
August 4–5 2023
University of Oulu
Our emotional bonds with other people are fundamental in terms of the way we interact in the world. Our social actions are often affected by the decisions made based on emotions. During recent years, we have deployed the framework of theory of attachment familiar from developmental psychology to address the impact of relationships and their dysfunctions on past people – and through the intergenerational nature of these issues, even on the current generations. For example, trauma faced by an ancestral group or the dismissal experienced by socially marginalized individuals may have an impact on individuals’ ability to form secure relationships which often influences not only themselves but the upcoming generations. Archaeological research of emotional bonds is not limited to people, but humans also get attached to items and places. While such bonds may be a source of comfort, they can be used to substitute human interactions and lead to adverse outcomes (e.g., hoarding). In this seminar we will invite short presentations to discuss how we can research emotions, attachments, and social bonds in general in archaeology, but specifically in the contexts when children and minorities are involved. How we attach with other people is influenced by our childhood experiences and for this reason, views on the past childhood may be considered central for understanding these phenomena.