Can Religion Drive Economic Complexification in Early Human Societies? A Cross-Cultural Analysis of North American Archaeological Data

Published Online • Vol/Iss. NA • OSF Preprint • • Published In • Pages: 1-23 •
By Buck, Zach

Abstract

Recent research has suggested a co-evolutionary relationship exists between religion and economic complexity. The goal of this study is to examine religion as a driver of economic complexity in the North American archaeological record. Building on and critiquing prominent theories like niche construction, Brian Hayden’s paleo-political ecology (PPE), and Watts et al. 2022 model, this study concludes that religion should not be considered a driver in this dataset but should not be left out of future considerations.

Samples

Sample Used Coded Data Comment
Researcher's ownResearcher's Own21 North American traditions with data on eHRAF

Hypotheses (2)

HypothesisSupported
Religion will be a driver of economic complexification (2)Partially Supported
The presence of religious specialists will be positively associated with food storage (11)Supported
Documents and Hypotheses Filed By: hattie.berke