In an historical account of the growth and development of the field of cognitive anthropology, Roy D'Andrade examines how cultural knowledge is organised within and between human minds. He begins by examining the research carried out during the l950s and l960s which was concerned with how different cultures classify kinship relationships and the natural environment, and then traces the development of more complex and sophisticated cognitive theories of classification in anthropology which took place in the l970s and l980s. In an analysis of more recent developments, the author considers work involving cultural models, emotion, motivation and action. He concludes with a summary of the theoretical perspective of cognitive anthropology.

"This book will be a first-rate text for any course in cognitive anthropology and a fine supplement for survey courses in the cognitive sciences. It is also an important resource for professional anthropologists, and should be read by cognitive scientists..." Choice
"...provides the best overview of cognitive anthropology we have to date....D'Andrade does a masterful and balanced job of presenting the contributions of a range of perspectives while making his own positions clear along the way....clear, authoritative, and useful....provides some important guideposts about how we might pursue a research agenda without reinventing too many wheels." James V. Wertsch, Contemporary Psychology