The article examines whether cultural groups tend to use supernatural beliefs more to explain natural phenomena or social phenomena. Analysis of ethnographic text from 114 diverse societies reveals that supernatural explanations are more common for natural phenomena, consistent with the theory that humans tend to perceive intent and agency in the natural world. However, supernatural explanations of social phenomena were more prevalent in urbanized societies with greater social complexity and anonymity. The study highlights how people use supernatural beliefs to explain their world and how this varies across small-scale and urbanized communities.

This article presents tests of hypotheses derived from an evolutionary approach to the rape of women. A cross-cultural test of the relationship between polygyny and rape in non-industrial societies is presented. Results suggest that the degree of polygyny is positively associated with the severity of punishment for rape.

This study focuses on death symbolism in relation to matrilineal descent. Findings suggest that matrilineal societies are more likely than patrilineal or bilateral societies to believe in ancestral spirits, reincarnation, and a quality of afterlife unconditioned on individual’s behavior.

This paper tests "theories which suggest that there are causal-functional relationships between the dependent variables peacemaking and peace stability on the one hand and certain independent variables, such as political complexity, warrior class, warfare objectives, cultural homology and intersocietal ties, on the other hand." Significant relationships were found between the last three independent variables.

Textor's (1967) A Cross-Cultural Summary is used to test a variety of Sauer's (1952) hypotheses concerning the sequence of agricultural developments. Tests are primarily focused on subsistence variables.

This study explores the relationship between level of legal evolution (measured on a Guttman scale that ranges from just mediation to counsel, police, and mediation) and level of societal complexity. Results suggest a significant association between level of legal evolution and level of societal complexity.

This chapter explores the relationship between cultural complexity and song. Several measures of cultural complexity are correlated with different aspects of singing. All hypotheses are supported.

This book investigates individual and group responses to death and the problems that death can create in a society. Several hypotheses regarding grief and mourning, as well as their variation with other societal variables, are supported with cross-cultural tests.

The authors put forward a theoretical model called "personality integration of culture." At the heart of the model is the idea that psychological processes may help explain why certain aspects of culture are related to other aspects. To test this model they focus on theories and therapies regarding illness and they use psychoanalytic ideas on positive and negative fixation to suggest how differences in child-rearing customs may account for different ideas about the causes of illness. The strongest results relate to socialization anxiety in a particular area of socialization (e.g., oral, dependency, and aggression) amd respective causes of illness. Results regarding negative fixation are generally supported, whereas positive fixation is not.

This chapter offers an exploratory study that examines the relationships between several culture characterstics, including child socialization practices, social structure, and food production, and mind-altering drug use in non-literate societies. All hypotheses were supported.