Random drift and culture change

Bentley, Alex; Hahn, M.W.; Shennan, S.J.

Abstract

We show that the frequency distributions of cultural variants, in three different real-world examples--first names, archaeological pottery and applications for technology patents--follow power laws that can be explained by a simple model of random drift. We conclude that cultural and economic choices often reflect a decision process that is value-neutral; this result has far-reaching testable implications for social-science research

Citation

Bentley, A., Hahn, M., & Shennan, S. (2004). Random drift and culture change. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 271(1547), 1443-1450. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2004.2746

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Jul 1, 2004
• Deposit Date: Mar 5, 2008
• Journal: Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
• Print ISSN: 0962-8452
• Electronic ISSN: 1471-2954
• Publisher: The Royal Society
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 271
• Issue: 1547
• Pages: 1443-1450
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2004.2746
• Keywords: Cultural evolution, Random genetic drift, Patents, First names, Pottery, Power laws.
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1622925
• Publisher URL: http://www.journals.royalsoc.ac.uk/openurl.asp?genre=article&eissn=1471-2954&volume=271&issue=1547&spage=1443