Cross-Cultural Correlates of the Ownership of Private Property: A Look from Another Data Base
Anthropologica • Vol/Iss. 34(1) • Canadian Anthropology Society • Vancouver, CA • Published In • Pages: 71-88 •
By Rudmin, Floyd Webster
Hypothesis
Certain characteristics of societies will be significantly correlated in the same direction with both Swanson's (1966) and Murdock's (1967) measures of private property ownership.
Note
The 32 variables used in the present test were coded by Swanson and were found to be significantly and reliably correlated with Murdock's measures of similar variables. Of these 32 variables, 10 were found to be significantly correlated in some way with the private ownership of property. The seven significant positive predictors are agriculture in grain, size of the population, social classes, sovereign organization, primogeniture, active ancestral spirits, and supernational sanctions for morality. The three significant negative predictors are collecting and gathering, hunting, and outgroup intimacy.
| Test Name | Support | Significance | Coefficient | Tail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kendall Correlation | Support for 10 of the 32 variables - see note for directions | p < 0.05 for 10 of the 32 variables | Multiple r values | UNKNOWN |
| Variable Name | Variable Type | OCM Term(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Hunting | Independent | Hunting And Trapping |
| Social Classes | Independent | Classes |
| Murdock's col.74 "Inheritance of Real Property" | Dependent | Property System, Real Property, Inheritance |
| Murdock's col.76 "Inheritance of Moveable Property" | Dependent | Property In Movables, Inheritance |
| Swanson's v.6 "Individually Owned Property" | Dependent | Property System, Ownership And Control Of Capital |
| Collecting and Gathering | Independent | Collecting |
| Agriculture in Grain | Independent | Cereal Agriculture |
| Size of Population | Independent | Population |
| Sovereign Organization | Independent | Territorial Hierarchy, Dependencies |
| Primogeniture | Independent | Inheritance |
| Outgroup Intimacy | Independent | Interpersonal Relations, External Relations |
| Active Ancestral Spirits | Independent | Cult Of The Dead, Spirits And Gods |
| Supernatural Sanctions for Morality | Independent | Spirits And Gods, Theological Systems |