How small-scale societies achieve large-scale cooperation

Glowacki, Luke; Lew-Levy, Sheina

Abstract

For most of our species’ history, humans have lived in relatively small subsistence communities, often called small-scale societies. While these groups lack centralized institutions, they can and often do maintain large-scale cooperation. Here, we explore several mechanisms promoting cooperation in small-scale societies, including (a) the development of social norms that encourage prosocial behavior, (b) reciprocal exchange relationships, (c) reputation that facilitates high-cost cooperation, (d) relational wealth, and (e) risk buffering institutions. We illustrate these with ethnographic and psychological evidence from contemporary small-scale societies. We argue that these mechanisms for cooperation helped past and present small-scale communities adapt to diverse ecological and social niches.

Citation

Glowacki, L., & Lew-Levy, S. (2022). How small-scale societies achieve large-scale cooperation. Current Opinion in Psychology, 44, 44-48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.08.026

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 1, 2021
• Online Publication Date: Aug 28, 2021
• Publication Date: 2022-04
• Deposit Date: Sep 11, 2023
• Journal: Current Opinion in Psychology
• Print ISSN: 2352-250X
• Electronic ISSN: 2352-2518
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 44
• Pages: 44-48
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.08.026
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1734050