TY - JOUR
T1 - The evolutionary anthropology of war
AU - Glowacki, Luke
AU - Wilson, Michael L.
AU - Wrangham, Richard W.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2020/10
Y1 - 2020/10
N2 - Evolutionary anthropologists seek to understand the evolution of warfare across multiple timescales, from the roots of warfare in the intergroup aggression of our primate ancestors, to the causes of warfare among contemporary societies today. While warfare remains a contentious subject, considerable evidence supports the view that warfare is a strategy by which coalitions of males cooperate to acquire and defend resources necessary for reproduction. This strategy is not the result of a single “instinct” for war, but is instead an emergent property resulting from evolved psychological mechanisms (such as xenophobia and parochial altruism). These mechanisms are sensitive to ecological and social conditions, such that the prevalence and patterns of warfare vary according to subsistence strategies, military technology, cultural institutions, and political and economic relations. When economic conditions enable intergroup relations to change from zero-sum to positive-sum games, peaceful intergroup relations can emerge.
AB - Evolutionary anthropologists seek to understand the evolution of warfare across multiple timescales, from the roots of warfare in the intergroup aggression of our primate ancestors, to the causes of warfare among contemporary societies today. While warfare remains a contentious subject, considerable evidence supports the view that warfare is a strategy by which coalitions of males cooperate to acquire and defend resources necessary for reproduction. This strategy is not the result of a single “instinct” for war, but is instead an emergent property resulting from evolved psychological mechanisms (such as xenophobia and parochial altruism). These mechanisms are sensitive to ecological and social conditions, such that the prevalence and patterns of warfare vary according to subsistence strategies, military technology, cultural institutions, and political and economic relations. When economic conditions enable intergroup relations to change from zero-sum to positive-sum games, peaceful intergroup relations can emerge.
KW - Aggression
KW - Evolution
KW - Intergroup conflict
KW - Primates
KW - Warfare
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jebo.2017.09.014
DO - 10.1016/j.jebo.2017.09.014
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85032024077
SN - 0167-2681
VL - 178
SP - 963
EP - 982
JO - Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization
JF - Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization
ER -