Considerable disagreement exists in regard to the origin and distribution of economic phenomena such as money, slavery, markets, exchange, and imbalanced transfers. Here the author utilizes a worldwide cross-cultural sample of 60 pre-industrial "societies" to empirically test many economic hypotheses, with a focus on distributional mechanisms and institutions.

Considerable disagreement exists in regard to the origin and distribution of economic phenomena such as money, slavery, markets, exchange, and imbalanced transfers. Here the author utilizes a worldwide cross-cultural sample of 60 pre-industrial "societies" to empirically test many economic hypotheses, with a focus on distributional mechanisms and institutions.

Considerable disagreement exists in regard to the origin and distribution of economic phenomena such as money, slavery, markets, exchange, and imbalanced transfers. Here the author utilizes a worldwide cross-cultural sample of 60 pre-industrial "societies" to empirically test many economic hypotheses, with a focus on distributional mechanisms and institutions.

This book is a comparative study of the ways in which work is organized among non-industrial societies in the production of material goods. Two general hypotheses guide the author's work: (1) The structure of any work organization is influenced by both techonological processes and social setting, and (2) The structure of any reward system is influenced by the characteristics of the work organization, the social setting, and the limits imposed by features of the technological processes. Several predictions are presented and all are supported.

This book is a comparative study of the ways in which work is organized among non-industrial societies in the production of material goods. Two general hypotheses guide the author's work: (1) The structure of any work organization is influenced by both techonological processes and social setting, and (2) The structure of any reward system is influenced by the characteristics of the work organization, the social setting, and the limits imposed by features of the technological processes. Several predictions are presented and all are supported.

Researchers investigated the variation of land tenure systems across forager societies using the economic defensibility model. The study attempted to explain the variation in tenure systems across 30 hunter-gatherer societies. Using data on defense and sharing of resources among groups, and indicators of resource density, resource predictability, and competition for resources, the researchers were unable to explain the variation. This study highlights the vast range of diversity and complexity of foragers subsistence strategies, and proposes that it may be more telling to conceptualize tenure systems among hunter-gatherer societies as assemblages of multiple property regimes. While there was no overall evidence that environmental variables of resource density and predictability explain variation in tenure systems, researchers did find that increasing population density, and greater competition for resources leads to greater territoriality.

This paper examines relationships among mode of production, sedentarism, and population size. Generally, agricultural societies were found to be sedentary and have larger populations, while migratory societies (such as herders or hunters) had smaller population size.

This study explores the evolution of family systems in non-industrial agricultural societies based on environmental conditions. First, the authors conduct a multi-evolutionary simulation for each family system: absolute nuclear families (nuclear with unequal inheritance), egalitarian nuclear families (nuclear with equal inheritance), stem families (extended families with unequal inheritance), and community families (extended families with equal inheritance). Second, they use Spearman's rank correlation analyses to assess the relation between the 186 non-industrial societies and the types of inheritance relationships, either parent-child (nuclear or extended) or inter-sibling (strongly biased or equal). The results show that the four core family systems are related to wealth and land resources. Other relevant findings are that low polygyny is related to agricultural societies, higher poverty levels to extended families, and accelerated wealth accumulation to strongly biased inheritance.

Apostolou examines the argument that most of human evolution occurred in an environment where individuals had limited opportunity to exercise choice. This argument derives from evidence indicating that among contemporary and ancestral postindustrial societies, mate choice is regulated by parents choosing their children's spouses. Results from the present study show that in an arranged marriage setting, there is still space for individuals to exercise choice in mates (through premarital and extramarital relationships, as well as rape). Apostolou discusses possible explanations for these findings, as well as their evolutionary significance.

Apostolou examines the argument that most of human evolution occurred in an environment where individuals had limited opportunity to exercise choice. This argument derives from evidence indicating that among contemporary and ancestral postindustrial societies, mate choice is regulated by parents choosing their children's spouses. Results from the present study show that in an arranged marriage setting, there is still space for individuals to exercise choice in mates (through premarital and extramarital relationships, as well as rape). Apostolou discusses possible explanations for these findings, as well as their evolutionary significance.