Robert A. Rubinstein

Robert Rubinstein is an anthropologist with expertise in political and medical anthropology and in social science history and research methods. He received a Ph.D. in anthropology from the State University of New York at Binghamton in 1977. He received a master’s degree in public health from the University of Illinois in Chicago in 1983.

From 1994 to 2005 Rubinstein directed the Program on the Analysis and Resolution of Conflicts at the Maxwell School.

Rubinstein has conducted overseas research in urban and rural Egypt, where he lived from 1988-1992, throughout the Middle East, and in Belize and Mexico. In the United States, he has conducted research in Atlanta, Chicago and Syracuse.

In political anthropology, Rubinstein’s work focuses on cross-cultural aspects of conflict and dispute resolution, including negotiation, mediation and consensus building. He is an originator of the field of the anthropology of peacekeeping. Since 1985, he has conducted empirical research and policy studies in this field. He examines the ways that the success of peace operations depend upon cultural considerations, and how organizational and institutional cultures can facilitate or frustrate coordination in peace operations. Rubinstein has collaborated on policy applications of his work with the International Peace Academy, the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the United States Army Peacekeeping Institute.

As a medical anthropologist, Rubinstein focuses on conflict and health, inequalities in access to health care and the implications of those disparities for the health of populations, and on the integration of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies. He has developed community-based health interventions in Syracuse, Atlanta and Egypt. Rubinstein has collaborated on health policy issues with the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Carter Center, the Georgia Department of Physical Health and the Onondaga County Health Department.

Rubinstein’s work has been supported by grants from over twenty foundations and agencies, including: The Ford Foundation, the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, the National Institutes of Mental Health, the Ploughshares Fund, The United States Institute of Peace, the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research, and the William T. Grant Foundation.

Rubinstein has published more than 100 articles in journals and books. He is author or editor of nine books and research monographs,

In 1983, Rubinstein was a founding member of the Commission on Peace and Human Rights of the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences. He served as the commission executive secretary from 1983-1988, and from 1988–2018 as commission co-chair. From 2000–2004 he was editor of the commission’s official journal, Social Justice: Anthropology, Peace and Human Rights.

Rubinstein received the 2016 Victor Sidel and Barry Levy Award for Peace from the American Public Health Association, the 2010 Robert B. Textor and Family Prize for Excellence in Anticipatory Anthropology from the American Anthropological Association, and the Chancellor’s Citation for Faculty Excellence and Scholarly Distinction from Syracuse University. In 2000 Edward Weisband Distinguished Alumni Award for Public Service or Contributions to Public Affairs from the State University of New York at Binghamton, in 1997 the 25th Anniversary Class Distinguished Alumni Award from the State University of New York at Oswego, and he gave the 1995 Hardy Lecture in Scholarship and Public Interest at Hartwick College.

Rubinstein is a member of the board of directors of The Bridgeway Group. From 1999-2013 Rubinstein was a member of the board of directors of the Ploughshares Fund. He consults and lectures widely, both domestically and abroad.

Research Projects

Inequalities in Health: Collaborative community-based research examining  the structural and social factors that create and maintain racial, ethnic, and economic disparities in health in Syracuse, NY, and advocacy for policy change. 

Anthropology of Science, with special attention to the Integration of Anthropological and Epidemiological Methods:  A research program exploring the nature of science from an anthropological perspective, with a focus on developing multilevel integrated qualitative and quantitative research tools.

Peacekeeping: Research on cultural and institutional aspects of peacekeeping and coordination among militaries and civilian actors in conflict and post-conflict environments, and on whether and how anthropologist ought to contribute to such efforts.

Peace and conflict studies: Research focusing on cross-cultural aspects of negotiation, conflict resolution and collaboration.

Network analysis of trauma following murders due to neighborhood violence: Co-Principle Investigator, Sandra D. Lane; Co-Investigators: Dessa Bergen-Cico, Arnett Haygood-El, Timothy Jennings Bey, Linda Stone Fish)

Who are the Uninsured?: Focused Life Histories of Patients in a Clinic for the Uninsured, Co-Principle Investigator, Sandra D. Lane

Research Grants and Awards

Books

2022 Scrimshaw, Susan C, Sandra D. Lane, Robert A. Rubinstein, and Julian Fisher, editors. SAGE Handbook of Social Studies in Health and Medicine, 2nd Edition. London, UK: SAGE Publications. ISBN: 9781526440662

2012  Rubinstein, R.A., K.B. Fosher and C. Fujimura, editors. "Practicing Military Anthropology: Beyond Traditional Boundaries and Expectations." Bloomfield, CT: Kumarian Press. isbn: 978-1-56549-548-7.

2011  McNamara, Laura and R.A. Rubinstein, editors."Dangerous Liaisons: Anthropologists and the National Security State." Santa Fe, NM: SAR Press. isbn: 978-

2009  Zelizer, Craig and R.A. Rubinstein, editors."Building Peace: Practical Reflections from the Field." Bloomfield, CT: Kumarian Press.    isbn: 978-1-56549-286-8  

2008 Rubinstein, R.A. "Peacekeeping Under Fire: Culture and Intervention." Boulder, CO: Paradigm Publishers. isbn: 978-1-59451-548-4 

2001 Rubinstein, R.A., "Doing Fieldwork: The Correspondence of Robert Redfield and Sol Tax." New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books. (New edition of Fieldwork with a new introduction.)  isbn: 978-0-76580-735-9   

1991 Rubinstein, R.A.,"Fieldwork: The Correspondence of Robert Redfield and Sol Tax." Boulder: Westview Press.   isbn: 0-8133-0770-1 

1988 Rubinstein, R.A. and Foster, M.L., editors. "The Social Dynamics of Peace and Conflict: Culture in International Security." Boulder, CO: Westview Press.    isbn: 0-8133-7614-9 Reprinted: 1997 Rubinstein, R.A., and Foster, M.L., editors. "The Social Dynamics of Peace and Conflict: Culture in International Security." Dubque, IA: Kendall/Hunt .   isbn: 0-7872-4414-7

1986 Foster, M.L., and R.A. Rubinstein editors. "Peace and War: Cross‑Cultural Perspectives." New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books. isbn: 0-88738-069-7

1984 Rubinstein, R.A., Laughlin, C.D., and McManus, J. "Science as Cognitive Process: Toward an Empirical Philosophy of Science." Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.  isbn: 0-8122-7911-5

1984 Rubinstein, R.A., and Pinxten, R., editors. "Epistemology and Process:   Anthropological Views." Ghent, Belgium: Communication and Cognition Books.  isbn: 90-6004-232-8

Articles in Peer Reviewed Journals

2016 Mestad, Renee, Sandra D. Lane, Meghan Hall, Carrie Smith, Bruce Carter, Robert A. Rubinstein, Rob Keefe, and Shevelle Jones-Moore Prenatal Depression: Screening and Referral for Low-income Women during Antenatal Care, SOCIAL WORK AND PUBLIC HEALTH 31(6): 557–564

2015 Jennings-Bey, Timothy, Sandra D. Lane, R.A. Rubinstein, Dessa Bergen-Cico, Arnett Haybood-El, Helen Hudson, Shaundel Sanchez, and Frank L. Fowler. The Trauma Response Team: A Community Intervention for Gang Violence, JOURNAL OF URBAN HEALTH (BULLETIN OF THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF MEDICINE) 92(5):947-954.

2015 Peters, Rebecca Warne, Ronald Stade,  Susan Hyatt, Keith Brown, Maia Green,  and Robert A. Rubinstein, Anthropology’s contribution to training in the public policy professions: an Association for the Anthropology of Policy (ASAP) roundtable, POLAR: POLITICAL AND LEGAL ANTHROPOLOGY REVIEW 38(2): 356-364

2013 Anthropology and public policy, Proceedings of the Policy Studies Organization, New Series 23:38-46.

2012 Rubinstein, R.A. and Sandra D. Lane   “From Intervention to outcome:  The relationship between knowledge and behavior in a Trachoma Control Project,” The Journal of Healthcare, Science and the Humanities, 2(2): 30-44. 

2012 Price, Michael, Robert A. Rubinstein and David Price “Material support: U.S. anti-terrorism law threatens anthropologists’ human rights and academic freedom,” Anthropology Today 28(1):3-5. 

2011 Lane, Sandra D., Robert A. Rubinstein, Lutchmie Narine, Inga Back, Caitlin Cornell, Alexander Hodgens, Monique Brantley, Rachel Kramas, Kathleen Keough, Brandon O’Conner, William Suk, Eric Morrissette, and Mary Benson. Action Anthropology and Pedagogy: University-Community Collaborations in Setting Policy, Human Organization 70(3):289-299.

2010 R.A. Peacekeeping and the Return of Imperial Policing, International Peacekeeping 17(4): 459-472.

2010 Rubinstein, R.A. Back to the Future? Peacekeeping and Imperial Policing, SAREM Journal of Strategic Studies 8(15):13-36.

2009 Kudesia, Suprita and R.A. Rubinstein, Exchanges of Value in Peace Operations: Complex Meanings of ‘Private’ and ‘Transnational’ Transfers, International Studies Review 11(4):430-439.

2008  Rubinstein, R.A. Research and Practice in Peace and Conflict Studies: Directions for the Next Decade, Research in Social Movements, Conflicts and Change 29:281-293.

2008 Rubinstein, R.A., D.M. Keller, and M.E. Scherger. Culture and Interoperability in Integrated Missions,International Peacekeeping 15(4): 540-556.

2008 Lane, S.D., R.H. Keefe, R.A. Rubinstein, B.A. Levandowski, N. Webster, D.A. Cibula, A.K. Boahene, O. Dele-Michael, D. Carter, T. Jones, M.A. Wojtowycz and J. Brill. Structural Violence, Urban Retail Food Markets, and Low Birth Weight, Health and Place  14(3):415-423.  

2008 Lane, S.D., N. Webster, B. Levandowski, R.A. Rubinstein, R.H. Keefe, M. Wojtowycz, D.A. Cibula, J.E.F. Kingson, and R.H. Aubry. Environmental Injustice: Childhood Lead Poisoning, Teen Pregnancy, and Tobacco, Journal of Adolescent Health 42(1):43-49.

2007 Pinxten, R., M. Cornelis and R.A. Rubinstein, European Identity: Diversity in Union, International Journal of Public Administration 30:687-698.

2006 Rubinstein, R.A., Motivation et Maintien de la Paix: Élaboration d’un Lien Entre Agir et Structure [Motivation and Peacekeeping : Modeling the Link Between Agency and Structure], Anthropologie et Sociétés 30(1):137-155.

2006 Rubinstein, R. A., S.D. Lane, S. Sallam, A. Sheta, Z.Gad,  A.R. Sherif, M. Selim, A. Gad,  A. Shama, J. Schachter, C.R. Dawson, Controlling Blinding Trachoma in the Egyptian Delta: Integrating Clinical, Epidemiological and Anthropological Understandings, Anthropology and Medicine 13(2): 99-118.

2005 Rubinstein, R.A., Intervention and Culture: An Anthropological Approach to Peace Operations, Security Dialogue 36(4):527-544. 

2004 Lane, S.D., R.H. Keefe, R.A. Rubinstein, B.A. Levandowski, M. Freedman, A. Rosenthal, D.A. Cibula, and M. Czerwinski, Marriage Promotion and Missing Men: African American Women in a Demographic Double Bind,  Medical Anthropology Quarterly 18(2): 405-428.

2004  Lane, S.D.,  R.A. Rubinstein, R. Keefe, N. Webster, D. Cibula, A. Rosenthal and J. Dowdell, Structural Violence and Racial Disparity in HIV Transmission,  Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved 15:319-335.

2003  Rubinstein, R.A., Cross-Cultural Considerations in Complex Peace Operations, The Negotiation Journal 19(1): 29-49.

2002  Rubinstein, R.A. and Lane, S.D. Population, Identity, and Political Violence, Social Justice: Anthropology Peace and Human Rights 3(3/4): 139-152.

2000 Lane, S.D., Rubinstein, R.A., Cibula, D. and N. Webster, Toward a Public Health Approach to Bioethics, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 925:25-36.

Reprinted in:
Ethics and Anthropology: Facing Future Issues in Human Biology, Globalism, and Cultural Property, Anne-Marie Cantwell, Eva Friedlander, and Madeleine Tramm, editors. New York: New York Academy of Sciences, 2000

2000 Rubinstein, R.A., Anthropology Peace and Human Rights: Social Justice and World Anthropology, Social Justice: Anthropology, Peace and Human Rights 1(1-4):1-5.

1999  D’Amico, L.C. and R.A. Rubinstein Cultural Considerations when ‘Setting’ the Negotiation Table, Negotiation Journal  15:349-355.

1998 Rubinstein, R.A.  “Breaking the Bureaucracy:” Drug Registration and Neocolonial Relations in Egypt, Social Science and Medicine 46(11):1487-1494.

1998 Rubinstein, R.A.  Methodological Challenges in the Ethnographic Study of Multilateral Peacekeeping, Political and Legal Anthropology Review 21(1):138-149.

1998 Rubinstein, R.A. Peacekeeping Under Fire: Understanding the Social Construction of the Legitimacy of Multilateral Intervention, Human Peace 11(4):22-29.

1997 Dawson, C.R., J. Schachter, S. Sallam, A. Sheta, R.A. Rubinstein, and H. Washton, A Comparison of Oral Azithromycin with Topical Oxytetracycline/Polymyxin for the Treatment of Trachoma in Children, Clinical Infectious Diseases 24:363-368.

1996 Lane, S.D. and R.A. Rubinstein, Judging the Other: Responding to Traditional Female Genital Surgeries, Hastings Center Report 26(3):31-40.

Reprinted in: Ethics and Medical Decision-Making (International Library of Medicine, Ethics and Law) Michael Freeman, editor. London: Ashgate, 2002.

1993 Rubinstein, R.A., Cultural Aspects of Peacekeeping: Notes on the Substance of Symbols, Millennium: Journal of International Studies 22(3):547-562. 

Reprinted in :
Culture in World Politics, Dominique Jacquin-Berdal, Andrew Oros, and Marco Verweij, editors. London and New York: Macmillan Press Ltd. and  St. Martin's Press, 1998.

1991 Rubinstein, R.A. Managing Ethnographic Data with askSam, Cultural Anthropology Methods 3(2):4-8.

1991 Rubinstein, R.A., A Conversation with Sol Tax, Current Anthropology 32(2): 175-183. 

1989 Rubinstein, R.A., Culture, International Affairs and Multilateral Peacekeeping: Confusing Process and Pattern, Cultural Dynamics 2(1):41‑61.

1988 Rubinstein, R.A., Cultural Analysis and International Security. Alternatives 13(4): 529‑542. 

Reprinted as:
Rubinstein, R.A., Anthropology and International Security, in The Social Dynamics of Peace and Conflict, R.A. Rubinstein and M.L. Foster, editors. Boulder: Westview Press, Pp. 17‑34, 1988.

1987 McKeown, C.T., Rubinstein, R.A., and Kelly, J.G., Anthropology, the Meaning of Community, and Prevention, Prevention in Human Services 5:35‑64.

1986 Rubinstein, R.A., Reflections on Action Anthropology: Some Developmental Dynamics of an Anthropological Tradition, Human Organization 45:270‑279.   

1986 Laughlin, C.D., McManus, J., Rubinstein, R.A., and Shearer, J., The Ritual Transformation of Experience, Studies in Symbolic Interaction  7(A):107‑136.

1985 Rubinstein, R.A., Kelly, J.G., and Maines, D.R., The Interdisciplinary Background of Community Psychology: The Early Roots of an Ecological Perspective, American Psychological Association Division of Community Psychology Newsletter 18(3):10‑14.

1984 Rubinstein, R.A., Epidemiology and Anthropology: Notes on Science and Scientism, Communication and Cognition 17:163‑185.

1984 Rubinstein, R.A., and Brown, R.T., An Evaluation of the Diagnostic Category of Attention Deficit Disorder, American Journal of Orthopsychiatry 54:398‑414.

1983 Rubinstein, R.A., Averting International Conflict and the Policy Process: Toward a Role for Anthropologists, Forum For Correspondence and Contact 14(1):96‑100.

1981 Rubinstein, R.A., Toward the Anthropological Study of Cognitive Performance, Human Relations 34(8):667‑703. 

1980 Rubinstein, R.A., Field‑Dependence and Piagetian Operational Thought in Northern Belize, Child Study Journal 10(3):67‑76. 

1980 Rubinstein, R.A., "Subtractive Bilingualism" in Northern Belize, ERIC Report, ED 184366,  National Institute of Education, Microfiche, 38 Pp. 

1979 Rubinstein, R.A., The Cognitive Consequences of Bilingual Education in Northern Belize, American Ethnologist 6:583‑601. 

1979 Rubinstein, R.A., English Language Instruction in Belizean Schools: Some Linguistic Considerations in Corozal Town, Journal of Belizean Affairs 9(2):47‑59.

1977 Rubinstein, R.A., and Laughlin, C.D., Bridging Levels of Systemic Organization, Current Anthropology 18:459‑463.

1975 Rubinstein, R.A., Reciprocity and Resource Deprivation Among the Urban Poor of Mexico City, Urban Anthropology 4:251‑264.  

Book Chapters

2012 Rubinstein, R.A., Belief in Science, in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner: Liber Amicorum voor Rik Pinxten, I. Pisters, A. van Dienderen, and C. Longman, editors. Gent, Belgium: Academia Press/ J. Story-Scientia, pp. 419-432.

2012 Rubinstein, R.A., Retrospective Attribution, Ritual Pollution and Master Narratives in Anthropology’s Engagements with “The Military,” in Practicing Military Anthropology: Beyond Traditional Boundaries and Expectations, R.A. Rubinstein, K.B. Fosher and C.K. Fujimura, editors. Boomfield, CT: Kumarian Press, pp. 119-134. {peer reviewed}

2012 Rubinstein, R.A., K.B. Fosher and C.K. Fujimura, Exploring Military Anthropology, in Practicing Military Anthropology: Beyond Traditional Boundaries and Expectations, R.A. Rubinstein, K.B. Fosher and C.K. Fujimura, editors. Boomfield, CT: Kumarian Press, pp. 1-8. {peer reviewed}

2012 Rubinstein, R.A. and Suprita Kudesia, Transnational transfers and peace operations: the empirically elusive quality of the analytic categories, in Transnational Transfers and Global Development, Stuart S. Brown, ed. London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 182-201. {peer reviewed}

2011 Rubinstein, R.A., Ethical Considerations from the Study of Peacekeeping, in Robert Albro, George Marcus, Laura McNamara, and Monica Schoch-Spana, editors. Anthropologists in the SecurityScape: Ethics, Practice, and Professional Identity. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press, Pp. 183-195. {peer reviewed}

2011 Rubinstein, R.A., Ethics, Engagement and Experience: Anthropological Excursions in Culture and the National Security State, in Dangerous Liaisons: Anthropologists and the National Security State, McNamara, L. and R.A. Rubinstein, eds. Santa Fe, NM: SAR Press, Pp. 145-165. {peer reviewed}

2011  McNamara, L. and R.A. Rubinstein, Introduction: Scholars, Security, Citizenship: Anthropology and the State at War, In Dangerous Liaisons: Anthropologists and the National Security State, McNamara, L. and R.A. Rubinstein, eds. Santa Fe, NM: SAR Press, Pp. xiii-xxxiv.

2011 Rubinstein, R.A. “Representation and Response: Culture and Conflict Transformation,” in Joint Research Institute for International Peace and Culture, Aoyama Gakuin University, editor. Conflict and Culture: Fostering Peace through Cultural Initiatives. New York, NY: The Japan Foundation, pp. 65-73. {peer reviewed}

2009 Rubinstein, R.A. and Rik Pinxten, Anthropology and Peace Studies. In Anthropology Now, Peter J.M. Nas and Zhang Jijiao, eds.  Beijing, P.R. China: Intellectual Property Publishing House, Pp. 295-310.

2009  Zelizer, Craig and R.A. Rubinstein, Introduction: Creating Structure and Capacity for Peace, In Building Peace: Practical Reflections from the Field, Craig Zelizer and R.A. Rubinstein, eds.  Bloomfield, CT: Kumarian Press, Pp. 1-15. {peer reviewed}

2009 Rubinstein, R.A., Anthropology: Culture and Conflict, In Peace, Justice and Security Studies: A Curriculum Guide, 7th Edition. McElwee, T.A., B.W. Hall, J. Liechty, and J. Garber , editors. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Press, Pp.489-496. {peer reviewed}

2008  Kyrou, Christos and R.A. Rubinstein,  Culture and Conflict: An Anthropological Perspective, In Encyclopedia of Violence, Peace, and Conflict, Second Edition. L. Kurtz, editor. Oxford, UK: Elsevier Ltd., Pp. 515-521. {peer reviewed}

2006 Rubinstein, R.A., Approaching Racism: Attitudes, Actions, and Social Structure, In Racism in Metropolitan Areas, Rik Pinxten and Ellen Preckler, editors. London: Berghahn Press, Pp. 93-100. {peer reviewed}

2003  Rubinstein, R.A., Politics and Peacekeepers: Experience and Political Representation Among United States Military Officers, In Anthropology and the United States Military: Coming of Age in the Twenty-First Century,  Pamela R. Frese and Margaret C. Harrell (editors). New York: Palgrave Macmillan, Pp. 15-27. {peer reviewed}

2003 Pinxten, H., Cornelis, M. and Rubinstein, R.A., European Identity: Diversity in Union, in Constructing Civic Virtue, Alasdair Roberts (editor). Syracuse, NY: Alan K. Campbell Public Affairs Institute, 115-128.

2002 Rubinstein, R.A., Translating Intuitive Knowledge: A Research Agenda for Dispute Resolution, In An Experiment in ‘Practice to Theory’ in Conflict Resolution. Eds. Sandra Cheldelin, Christopher Honeyman, and Maria R. Volpe. Fairfax, VA: Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution: Web publication at http://www.gmu.edu/departments/ICAR/hewlett/rubinstein.htm.

2001 Rubinstein, R.A., Fieldwork and Tradition in Anthropology: Resonance and Reflexivity, In Doing Fieldwork: The Correspondence of Robert Redfield and Sol Tax. Ed. R.A. Rubinstein. New Brunswick, NJ.: Transaction Books, 2001: xi-xviii. {peer reviewed}

2001 Rubinstein, R.A., Introduction, In Mary LeCron Foster. Finding the Themes: Family, Anthropology, Language Origins, Peace and Conflict, an Oral History conducted in 2000 by Suzanne Riess. Berkeley, CA: Regional Oral History Office, The Bancroft Library, University of California. Pp. vii-xi.

2001 Rubinstein, R.A., Remarks at Fosters’ Oral History Presentation, In Mary LeCron Foster, ‘Finding the Themes: Family, Anthropology, Language Origins, Peace and Conflict’ an Oral History Conducted in 2000 by Suzanne Riess. Ed. Suzanne Riess. Berkeley, CA: Regional Oral History Office, University of California, 2001: 248-252.

2000 Rubinstein, R.A., Scrimshaw, S., and S. Morrissey, S., Classification and Process in Sociomedical Understanding: Towards a Multilevel View of Sociomedical Methodology, Handbook of Social Studies in Health and Medicine, G. Albrecht, R. Fitzpatrick, and S. Scrimshaw, editors. London: Sage. Pp. 36-49. {peer reviewed}

1999  Kyrou, C., Pribilsky, J. and Rubinstein, R.A., Cultural Anthropology Studies of Conflict," In Encyclopedia of Violence, Peace and Conflict, L. Kurtz, editor. San Diego: Academic Press. Pp. 517-524. {peer reviewed}

1996 Lane, S.D. and Rubinstein, R.A., International Health: Problems and Programs in Anthropological Perspective, in Medical Anthropology: Contemporary Theory and Method, Revised Edition, C. Sargent and T. Johnson, editors.  Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, Pp. 396-423.  (revision of Rubinstein and Lane 1990, #8 below.) {peer reviewed}

1994 Rubinstein, R.A., Collective Violence and Common Security, in Companion Encyclopaedia of Anthropology, Tim Ingold, editor. London: Routeledge. Pp. 983-1009. {peer reviewed}

1992 Rubinstein, R.A., Culture and Negotiation, in The Struggle for Peace: Israelis and Palestinians, Elizabeth Fernea and Mary E. Hocking, editors. Austin: University of Texas Press, Pp. 116-129.  {peer reviewed}

1991 Rubinstein, R.A., Reflection and Reflexivity in Anthropology, in Fieldwork: The Correspondence of Robert Redfield and Sol Tax. Boulder: Westview Press, Pp. 1‑35. {peer reviewed} 

1990 Rubinstein, R.A. and Lane, S.D., International Health and Development, in Medical Anthropology: Contemporary Theory and Method, T. Johnson and C. Sargent, editors. Westport, CT:Greenwood Press, Pp. 367‑390. {peer reviewed}

1988 Rubinstein, R.A. and Foster, M.L., Revitalizing International Security Analysis: Contributions from Culture and Symbolism, in The Social Dynamics of Peace and Conflict, R.A. Rubinstein and M.L. Foster, editors. Boulder: Westview Press, Pp. 1‑14.  {peer reviewed}

1986 Rubinstein, R.A., The Collapse of Strategy: Understanding Ideological Bias in Policy Decisions, in Peace and War: Cross‑Cultural Perspectives. M.L. Foster and R.A. Rubinstein, editors. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books, Pp. 343‑351. {peer reviewed} 

1986 Rubinstein, R.A. Issues in Rural Health Care, section 7 in Rural Pediatric Practice, Elk Grove Village, IL: American Academy of Pediatrics.

1986 Rubinstein, R.A., and Perloff, J.D., Identifying Psychosocial Disorders in Children: On Integrating Epidemiological and Anthropological Understandings, in Medical Anthropology and Epidemiology, Janes, C., S. Gifford, and R. Stall, editors. Dordrecht: D. Reidel, Pp. 303‑332.  {peer reviewed}

1985 Rubinstein, R.A., and Tax, Sol., Power, Powerlessness, and the Failure of "Political Realism," in Native Power: The Quest for Autonomy and Nationhood of Indigenous Peoples, Jens Brsted, et. al., editors. Bergen (Norway): Universiteitsforlaget, Pp. 301‑308. {peer reviewed}

1983 Rubinstein, R.A., Structuralism and the Study of Cognitive Process, in The Future of Structuralism, J. Oosten and A. De Ruijter, editors.  Gottingen‑Geismar, W. Germany: Edition Herodot, Pp. 375‑401.  {peer reviewed}

1981 Rubinstein, R.A., and Tax, Sol., Literacy, Evolution, and Development, in The Spirit of the Earth: A Teilhard Centennial Celebration, J. Perlinski, editor. New York: Seabury Press, Pp. 49‑63. {peer reviewed}

Notes , Comments and Brief Journal Articles

2019 Rubinstein, Robert A., Sandra D. Lane, and Shaundel N. Sanchez, “Accessing the Intimacies of Community Life: Reply to Neofotistos, Current Anthropology 60(6): 838-839.

2014 Rubinstein, R.A. Responding to the Manipulation of Culture as a Political Tool, Sensor (Royal Military Academy Sandhurst), 3(1): 2-3.

2012 Rubinstein, R.A. The Return of Culture to Conflict Analysis and Resolution, Foreword to Context and Pretext in Conflict Resolution: Culture, Identity, Power and Practice, by Kevin Avruch. Boulder, CO: Paradigm Publishers, ix-xi.

2011 Rubinstein, R.A. Responding to Proposed Changes to the Federal Regulations Governing Institutional Review Boards, SfAA News 22(3): 25-28.

2011 Rubinstein, R.A. “ SfAA Public Policy Committee Solicits Society Member Contributions,” SfAA News 22(1):29-30. 

2010 Rubinstein, R.A. and Lane S.D. Training Students for Anthropologically-oriented Policy Research, SfAA News  21(2):37-40. 

 2010 Rubinstein, R.A., Ralph Bunche, Oxford Encyclopedia of Peace, Volume 1 Nigel Young, editor. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Pp. 220-222. {peer reviewed}

  2010 Rubinstein, R.A., Culture of Peacekeeping, Oxford Encyclopedia of Peace, Volume 1, Nigel Young, editor. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Pp. 528-529. {peer reviewed}

 2010 Rubinstein, R.A., Peacekeeping: Unintended Consequences, Oxford Encyclopedia of Peace, Volume 3. Nigel Young, editor. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Pp. 405-406. {peer reviewed}

 2010 Rubinstein, R.A., Peacekeeping: Integrated Missions and Humanitarian Role, Oxford Encyclopedia of Peace, Volume 3. Nigel Young, editor. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Pp. 397-399. {peer reviewed}

2008 Rubinstein, R.A., The Delicate Balance Between the University and the Military, Newsletter, Syracuse Peace Council 773:12.

2008 Lane, Sandra D. and Rubinstein, R.A., Collaborating to Confront Health Disparities in Syracuse, New York. Newsletter, Society for Applied Anthropology  19(1): 19-20.

2006 Rubinstein, R.A., Four Minutes to Midnight: The Origins and History of the IUAES Commission on Anthropology, Peace and Human Rights, Journal of Guangxi University for Nationalities (Philosophy and Social Science Edition) 28(3) 83-84. (in Chinese)

2001 Rubinstein, R.A. Culture, Identity, and International Cooperation.  Aggressive Behavior 27(3):245-246. {peer reviewed}

2000 Rubinstein, R.A., Notes on the Ethnographic Study of Peacekeeping. Inter-University Seminar on Armed Forces And Society Newsletter Winter: 9-10.

1999 Rubinstein, R.A.  Comment [on “The Fox Project, A Reevaluation”], Current Anthropology 40(2): 188-189.

1997 Rubinstein, R.A. When a Bridge is Just a Bridge: Notes on Symbolism and Normalization in the Middle East, Human Peace  11(3):10-11. 

1997 Rubinstein, R.A. and S.D. Lane, Female Circumcision Revisited, Hastings Center Report 27(2):5.

1994 Lane, S.D. and R.A. Rubinstein, On Condemning Female Genital Mutilation, Of Value (Published by the Society for Health and Human Values) 24(3):3-4. {peer reviewed}

1993 Dawson, C.R., Sallam, S.A., Sheta, A., Rubinstein, R.A., Washton, H. and Schachter, J., Trachoma Treatment with Oral Azithromycin or Topical Tetracycline, Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 34(4):738. {peer reviewed}

1992 Rubinstein, R.A., Sallam, S.A., Sheta, A.S.,Schachter, J. and Dawson, C.R., Micro-environmental Factors Affecting the Prevalence of Blinding Trachoma in the Egyptian Delta, Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science. 33(4):1324. {peer reviewed}

1991 Rubinstein, R.A., Tax, Sol, in International Dictionary of Anthropologists, Christopher Winters, editor. New York: Garland Publishing, Pp. 682-685.

1990 Rubinstein, R.A., Comment [on "Is Anthropology Art or Science?”], Current  Anthropology 31(3):276‑277.

1988 Rubinstein, R.A., Ritual Process and Images of the Other in Arms Control Negotiations, Human Peace 6:3‑7. {peer reviewed}

1987 Rubinstein, R.A., Anthropology and Advocacy,Science 237:823. {peer reviewed}  

1986 Rubinstein, R.A., International Conflict, Decision‑Making, and Anthropology, Anthropology Today 2(1):14. {peer reviewed} 

1985 Rubinstein, R.A., Validity of Attention Deficit Disorder: A Second Look, American Journal of Orthopsychiatry 55(3):467‑469.

1984 Rubinstein, R.A., Postdoctoral Training in Public Health: Problems and Promise for the Medical Anthropologist, Medical Anthropology Quarterly 15(4):93‑94. {peer reviewed}

1983 Rubinstein, R.A., Comment [on "Analogy, Mysticism and the Structure of Culture"], Current Anthropology 23:173‑174.

1982 Tax, Sol, and Rubinstein, R.A., Responsibility in Reviewing and Research, The Behavioral and Brain Sciences 5:238‑240S. 

Reprinted in:  
S. Harnad, editor, Peer Commentary on Peer Review, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983

1979 Rubinstein, R.A., On "Culture and Sociobiology," American Anthropologist 81:653‑654.  {peer reviewed} 

1977 Rubinstein, R.A., and Laughlin, C.D., Reply to Comments on Bridging Levels of Systemic Organization, Current Anthropology 18:475‑481.

2013 Invited paper: “Anthropological Contributions to Preventing Blinding Eye Disease in Egypt,” (Robert A. Rubinstein and Sandra D. Lane). The Brooks Museum 2012-2013 Lecture Series on Culture and Health, SUNY Cortland, 20 March.

2012 Invited paper: “Mind the Gap: Bridging Anthropology and International Relations Approaches to Knowledge Production and Use,” (Rebecca Warne Peters and Robert Rubinstein). Presented at the conference,   Anthropology meets International Relations: Potentials, Prospects, Pitfalls, 29/30 November, Peace Research Institute Frankfurt.  Frankfurt/Main. (Presented by Peters)

2012 Invited participant: “Re-Enchanting Humanity: Stories for a Sustainable Future.” Wisdom Thinkers Network Roundtable, hosted by Syracuse University, SUNY ESF, LeMoyne College and the Community Foundation of Central New York, 28-30 November.

2012 Invited speaker: Rubinstein, Robert A.  “David Richardson’s Eclecticism,” Celebrating and Reflecting on J. David Richardson’s Career, Peterson Institute for International Economics, Washington, DC, 28 September.

2011 “Culture the military and humanitarian action,” Conference on Accounting for Culture in the Military: Implications for Future Humanitarian Cooperation, jointly sponsored by The Curb Center for Art, Enterprise and Public Policy at Vanderbilt University and The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington, D.C., 9 December.

2011 “Conflict and Cooperation in the ‘Arab Spring:’ Prospects for Democratic Transformation in the Middle East,” 13th Annual Pearl A. and Albert E. Mall Lecture, Binghamton University, 11 May 2011.

2010 “Back to the Future?: Peacekeeping and the Return of Imperial Policing,” invited lecture, Mershon Center for International Security Studies, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 8 October.

2010 “The Specificity of Culture and Context in Collaborative Relationships,”  invited lecture Workshop on Unifying Social Frameworks, National Research Council, Washington, DC, 16-17 August.

Recipient

2016 Victor Sidel and Barry Levy Award for Peace, American Public Health Association

2010 Robert B. Textor and Family Prize for Excellence in Anticipatory Anthropology from the American Anthropological Association.

2010 Chancellor's Citation for Faculty Excellence and Scholarly Distinction from Syracuse University.

2000 Edward Weisband Distinguished Alumni Award for Public Service or Contributions to Public Affairs from the State University of New York at Binghamton.

1997 the 25th Anniversary Class Distinguished Alumni Award  from the State University of New York at Oswego.

1995 Hardy Lecture in Scholarship and Public Interest at Hartwick College. 

Rubinstein has conducted overseas research in urban and rural Egypt, where he lived from 1988-1992, and in Belize and Mexico. In the United States, he has conducted research in Atlanta, Chicago and Syracuse.

From July 1994-June 2005 he directed the Program on the Analysis and Resolution of Conflicts at the Maxwell School.  

Rubinstein was a member of the board of directors of the Ploughshares Fund from 1999-2013.