Steven Rousso-Schindler

Dr. Steven Rousso-Schindler is a visual anthropologist and a specialist in the anthropology of the Middle East. His research centers on Israel/Palestine, where he examines how national narratives are produced, circulated, and contested. Drawing on media analysis and ethnographic fieldwork, he investigates representations of historical and contemporary events in Israeli and Palestinian media and how these narratives shape collective memory, political identity, and public discourse.

In recent years, Dr. Rousso-Schindler’s research has also expanded to include the anthropology of artificial intelligence. His current AI-focused work explores how knowledge workers understand the promises and limits of generative AI, including how they anticipate it will transform - or fail to transform - their industries and professional identities. This project contributes to emerging anthropological conversations on technology, labor, and the cultural imaginaries surrounding AI.

Dr. Rousso-Schindler is also an active ethnographic and documentary filmmaker. He has collaborated on numerous film projects addressing topics such as environmental activism near the Port of Oakland in California, sustainable home-building in the United States, and social and cultural transformation in rural China. His work has been screened on PBS and showcased at major anthropological and documentary film festivals, including the Society for Visual Anthropology’s Film, Video, and Interactive Media Festival.

Israel/Palestine, AI, Visual Anthropology

ANTH 120: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

ANTH 440: Ethnographic Field School

ANTH 441/541: Ethnographic Film Production I

ANTH 442/542: Ethnographic Film Production II

ANTH 443: The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

ANTH 478: Anthropology & Film

Articles and Book Chapters

  1. Woodruff, Allison, Renee Shelby, Patrick Gage Kelley, Steven Rousso-Schindler, Jamila Smith-Loud and Lauren Wilcox (2024) How Knowledge Workers Think Generative AI Will (Not) Transform Their Industries. CHI 2024, May 11–16, 2024, Honolulu, HI, USA.
  2. Woodruff, Allison, Sarah E. Fox, Steven Rousso-Schindler and Jeffrey Warshaw (2018) A Qualitative Exploration of Perceptions of Algorithmic Fairness. CHI 2018, April 21-26, 2018, Montreal, QC, Canada.
  3. Rousso-Schindler, Steven (2009) Israeli Population Politics and their Role in Creating National Narratives. In Sabine Berking and Magdalena Zolkos, eds. Between Life and Death: Governing Population in an Era of Human Rights. Berlin: Bergan Macmillan. Pp. 287-302.

Ethnographic and Documentary Films

  1. Rousso-Schindler, Steven (2016) At Street Level (26:46 minutes) Explores the challenges a small community-based organization faces as it attempts to employ science and technology to produce scientific data that can be leveraged to influence local environmental policy.
  2. Rousso-Schindler, Steven and Allison Woodruff (2009) Mediation (6 minutes). Explores the aesthetic experiences people have while engaging in green home-building.
  3. Rousso-Schindler, Steven and Allison Woodruff (2009) Building in a Green World (5 minutes). Explores the culture around environmentally-friendly homes while owners give tours of their houses, discussing sustainability, green networks, levels of satisfaction with homes and their value systems.
  4. Song, Zhifang, Steven Rousso-Schindler and Gary Seaman (2009) Maoism, Marriage, and Modernization: Marriage Exchange in a North China Village (30 minutes). Explores the changing marriage patterns in China over the last 50 years.
  5. Song, Zhifang, Steven Rousso-Schindler and Gary Seaman (2009) The Heavenly Court in Song Family Village: Gender, Hierarchy, and Religious Power in a North China Village (30 minutes). Explores gender roles in local religious groups in a Chinese village.
  6. Song, Zhifang, Steven Rousso-Schindler and Gary Seaman (2009) The Secret of the Stone. Segmentary Lineage Organization in a North China Village (35 minutes). Explores the changing system of segmentary lineage in China.
  7. Song, Zhifang, Steven Rousso-Schindler and Gary Seaman (2009) Song Family Village Takes a Bride: Wedding Customs in a North China Village (30 minutes). Explores the changing contemporary marriage practices in a Chinese village.
  8. Rousso, Niki and Steven Schindler (2003) Our Mother’s Recipe (26:46 minutes). Screened nationally on PBS. Explores the identities of three middle-aged Jewish sisters as they prepare for and celebrate the Passover holiday.
  9. Rousso, Niki and Steven Schindler (1997) Purim Prophecy (4:54 minutes). Student film Explores the historical mythical connections between the Old Testament story of Esther and Nazi Germany.