The cultural consequences of female contribution to subsistence

American Anthropologist • Vol/Iss. 88 • Published In • Pages: 124-150 •
By Schlegel, Alice, Barry III, Herbert

Abstract

This study relates female contributions to a variety of social variables. The author divides responses to high female contribution to subsistence into two categories: adaptive (i.e. increased exogamy, polygyny, and bridewealth) and attitudinal (i.e. increased valuation of girls and premarital permissiveness). It is proposed that where women contribute more, “they are perceived less as objects for male sexual and reproductive needs and more as a person in their own right” (149).
Documents and Hypotheses Filed By: Kate Cummings  Amelia Piazza