Nobody’s Normal is a breath-taking tour de force.

With lively illustrations across the centuries and spanning United States, England, Namibia, South Korea, and Nepal, Grinker shows how our shifting models of mental illness can only be fully appreciated by using different frames of reference. This fascinating book weaves together stories of mental illness during war, his grandfather’s psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud, and a focus on post-traumatic stress disorder and autism. The net result is a compelling global panorama. An invaluable book.

Sir Graham Thornicroft, Professor of Community Psychiatry, King’s College, London 
Read More about Nobody's Normal

A father’s inspiring portrait of his daughter informs this classic reassessment of the “epidemic” of autism.

In the Arms of Africa

The definitive biography of one of anthropology’s most controversial figures. 

A critical examination of the Korean “division system” that continues to hinder efforts towards peace and national ‘unification.’

A landmark study of the extraordinary relationship between the hunter-gatherers long referred to in the literature as “Pygmies” and their Farmer Neighbors. 

A one-of-a-kind textbook bringing key works in African studies to a wide range of readers. Forty-four articles have been selected either because they have proved to be classic and influential, or because of their significance to the current development of the field.

A newly revised and updated edition of this popular text with 14 brand new chapters and two new sections: Conflict and Violent Transformations; and Development, Governance and Globalization.

Anthropology of Africa

An essential collection of scholarly essays on the anthropology of Africa, offering a thorough introduction to the most important topics in this evolving and diverse field of study.

Recent Journal Publications

2019 | Grinker, Roy Richard.  “Autism, ‘Stigma,’ Disability: Shifting Historical Terrain.” Current Anthropology, volume 61, supplement 21, S65-67.

2019 | Benavides-Rawson, J. and Roy R. Grinker. “Culture and Autism in Education.” Sage International Handbook: Autism and Education, pp. 517-522.

2019 | Grinker, R.R., S. Lubkemann, C. Steiner, and E. Goncalves. 2018. “Introduction” to Companion to the Anthropology of Africa, R.R. Grinker, S. Lubkemann, C. Steiner, and E. Goncalves, Wiley-Blackwell, 2018.

2019 | Machaqueiro, Racquel and R.R. Grinker, Environmentality in Africa, Companion to the Anthropology of Africa, R.R. Grinker, S. Lubkemann, C. Steiner, and E. Goncalves, Wiley-Blackwell, 2018.

2019 | Benavides-Rawson, J, and Roy R. Grinker. “Reactive Attachment Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder: Diagnosis and Care in Cultural Context.” R.R. Fogler, Jason M. and Randall A. Phelps, eds. Trauma, Autism, and Neurodevelopmental Disorders: Integrating Research, Practice, and Policy, pp. 149-160. Springer.

2018 | Grinker, Roy R. “Being Trans is not a Mental Disorder.” The New York Times, December 6.

2018 | Kang-yi, Christina, Grinker, R.R., Beidas, R., Agha, A. , Russell R., Shah, S., Shea K., and Mandell, D. S. “Influence of Community-Level Cultural Beliefs about Autism on Families’ and Professionals’ Care for Children among Koreans in New York City.” Transcultural Psychiatry, 55 (5): 623-47.

2018 | Costa, Jurandir Freire and R.R. Grinker, Autism and First Person Accounts—The Cognitive Problem. In Autism in Translation, Elizabeth Fein and Clarice Rios, eds. Palgrave MacMillan

2018 | Grinker, R.R., Who Owns Autism?: Economics, Fetishism, and Stakeholders, in Autism in Translation, Elizabeth Fein and Clarice Rios, eds. Palgrave MacMillan.

2017 | Nola J. Chambers, Amy M. Wetherby, Sheri T. Stronach, Nonyameko Njongwe, Shuaib Kauchali, and R. R. Grinker, Early detection of autism spectrum disorder in young isiZulu-speaking children in South Africa, Autism 21, 5: 518-26, 2017

2015 | Grinker, Roy R. and David Mandell. “Notes on a Puzzle Piece.” Autism: International Journal of Research and Practice. August 2015 vol. 19 no. 6 643-645

2015 | Grinker, Roy R. “Reframing the Science and Anthropology of Autism.” Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry.” June 2015, Volume 39, Issue 2, pp 345-350

2015 | Grinker, Roy R., Christina Kang-Yi, Chloe Ahmann, Rinad Beidas, Adrienne Lagman, and David Mandell. “Cultural Adaptation and Translation of Outreach Materials on Autism Spectrum Disorder.” Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. August 2015, Volume 45, Issue 8, pp 2329-2336.