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Institutional complexity emerges from socioecological complexity in small-scale human societies.

Marcus J Hamilton1,2, Robert S Walker3, Briggs Buchanan4

  • 1Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at San Antonio , San Antonio, TX 78249, USA.

Proceedings. Biological Sciences
|May 7, 2024
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Summary

Cultural diversity arises from institutional complexity. This study reveals that institutions in small-scale societies emerge bottom-up as solutions to socioecological challenges, not top-down impositions.

Keywords:
Bayesian networksWestern North American Indian Databaseanthropological traitscausal inferencecultural diversityhuman niche

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Area of Science:

  • Anthropology
  • Sociology
  • Ecology

Background:

  • Human lifestyles exhibit vast diversity across time and space, a central focus in anthropology.
  • Cultural variation is significantly influenced by institutional complexity, encompassing rules, norms, and expectations passed across generations.
  • Understanding the emergence of institutions in small-scale societies is crucial for explaining this diversity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the causal structure of institutional complexity in small-scale societies.
  • To differentiate between top-down (elite imposition) and bottom-up (collective problem-solving) models of institutional emergence.
  • To analyze the relationship between socioecological complexity and institutional development.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized Bayesian networks to infer causal relationships.
  • Analyzed data from 172 ethnohistoric small-scale societies in western North America.
  • Focused on the period immediately preceding European colonization to capture pre-contact indigenous lifestyles.

Main Results:

  • Evidence suggests institutional complexity emerges from underlying socioecological complexity.
  • Institutions appear to function as solutions to coordination problems in complex environments.
  • Findings support a bottom-up emergence model driven by adaptive needs.

Conclusions:

  • Institutional complexity is a product of socioecological complexity, not solely elite coercion.
  • Institutions facilitate human-environment interactions and management in increasingly complex settings.
  • The study provides insights into the adaptive origins of cultural diversity in small-scale societies.