IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/plo/pone00/0247973.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Stabilization of cultural innovations depends on population density: Testing an epidemiological model of cultural evolution against a global dataset of rock art sites and climate-based estimates of ancient population densities

Author

Listed:
  • Richard Walker
  • Anders Eriksson
  • Camille Ruiz
  • Taylor Howard Newton
  • Francesco Casalegno

Abstract

Demographic models of human cultural evolution have high explanatory potential but weak empirical support. Here we use a global dataset of rock art sites and climate and genetics-based estimates of ancient population densities to test a new model based on epidemiological principles. The model focuses on the process whereby a cultural innovation becomes endemic in a population, predicting that this cannot occur unless population density exceeds a critical threshold. Analysis of the data, using a Bayesian statistical framework, shows that the model has stronger empirical support than a proportional model, where detection is directly proportional to population density, or a null model, where rock art detection ratios and population density are independent. Results for different geographical areas and periods are compatible with the predictions of the model and confirm its superiority with respect to the null model. Re-analysis of the rock art data, using a second set of independent population estimates, again supports the superiority of the model. Although the available data is sparse and the analysis cannot exclude all possible sources of bias, this is evidence that population density above a critical threshold may be a necessary condition for the maintenance of rock art as a stable part of a population’s cultural repertoire. Methods similar to those described can be used to test the model for other classes of archaeological artifact and to compare it against other models.

Suggested Citation

  • Richard Walker & Anders Eriksson & Camille Ruiz & Taylor Howard Newton & Francesco Casalegno, 2021. "Stabilization of cultural innovations depends on population density: Testing an epidemiological model of cultural evolution against a global dataset of rock art sites and climate-based estimates of an," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(3), pages 1-18, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0247973
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0247973
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0247973
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0247973&type=printable
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1371/journal.pone.0247973?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Axel Timmermann & Tobias Friedrich, 2016. "Late Pleistocene climate drivers of early human migration," Nature, Nature, vol. 538(7623), pages 92-95, October.
    2. Mark Collard & April Ruttle & Briggs Buchanan & Michael J O’Brien, 2013. "Population Size and Cultural Evolution in Nonindustrial Food-Producing Societies," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(9), pages 1-1, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Guangliang Hou & Weimiao Dong & Linhai Cai & Qingbo Wang & Menghan Qiu, 2021. "The History and Driving Force for Prehistoric Human Expansion Upward to the Hinterland of the Tibetan Plateau Post–Last Glacial Maximum," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-18, June.
    2. Frédérik Saltré & Joël Chadœuf & Thomas Higham & Monty Ochocki & Sebastián Block & Ellyse Bunney & Bastien Llamas & Corey J. A. Bradshaw, 2024. "Environmental conditions associated with initial northern expansion of anatomically modern humans," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    3. Pilowsky, Julia A. & Manica, Andrea & Brown, Stuart & Rahbek, Carsten & Fordham, Damien A., 2022. "Simulations of human migration into North America are more sensitive to demography than choice of palaeoclimate model," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 473(C).
    4. Huihui Cao & Yongqiang Wang & Menghan Qiu & Zhilin Shi & Guanghui Dong, 2022. "On the Exploration of Social Development during a Historical Period in the Eastern Tienshan Mountains via Archaeological and Geopolitical Perspectives," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-19, August.
    5. Susan E. Perry & Alecia Carter & Jacob Foster & Sabine Noebel & Marco Smolla, 2022. "What makes inventions become traditions?," Post-Print hal-03947000, HAL.
    6. Sally E. Street & Tuomas Eerola & Jeremy R. Kendal, 2022. "The role of population size in folk tune complexity," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-12, December.
    7. Kobayashi, Yutaka & Ohtsuki, Hisashi & Wakano, Joe Y., 2016. "Population size vs. social connectedness — A gene-culture coevolutionary approach to cumulative cultural evolution," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 87-95.
    8. A. R. Siders & Idowu Ajibade, 2021. "Introduction: Managed retreat and environmental justice in a changing climate," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 287-293, September.
    9. Alex Mesoudi, 2018. "Migration, acculturation, and the maintenance of between-group cultural variation," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(10), pages 1-23, October.
    10. Zhenyu Qin & Xuefeng Sun, 2023. "Glacial–Interglacial Cycles and Early Human Evolution in China," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-26, August.
    11. Xiaoqi Guo & Xuefeng Sun & Huayu Lu & Shejiang Wang & Chengqiu Lu, 2023. "Early Hominin Dispersal across the Qinling Mountains, China, during the Mid-Pleistocene Transition," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-17, October.
    12. Aoki, Kenichi, 2015. "Modeling abrupt cultural regime shifts during the Palaeolithic and Stone Age," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 6-12.
    13. Zhongxuan Li & Wenhao Li, 2022. "Repeated Palaeofloods of 8.2–6.4 ka and Coeval Rise of Neonatal Culture in the Upper Yangtze River, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-16, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0247973. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: plosone (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.