Publication Date

12-12-1978

Abstract

Attempts to explain the origin of complex social systems have been consistently unsuccessful. The arguments treating this subject are not predictive and fail to account for the documented variability of complex societies. This is attributed to their fundamentally non-processual orientation in which variable dimensions of analysis are generally lacking. Because of its more elaborate format, the recently popular “systems theory” approach is examined in detail with respect to these problems. It is suggested that familiarity with the epistemology of science can be useful for achieving the goal of explanation. The study of energy dynamics in cultural systems appears to have considerable potential for understanding the evolution of complex societies. Al I cultural systems must allocate finite energy supplies to maximize survival chances. These energy supplies are derived largely from human labor effort in pre-industrial societies. As agricultural production is the energy base of most complex societies, the problems involved in stabilizing production for a secure energy flow to the system are examined. There are a variety of strategies used to solve these problems, depending on the intensity of production and seasonality of the environment. Such strategies have an energetic cost and are referred to as "energy subsidies." The security problems generated by intensive cultivation systems in seasonal environments are fundamentally different from those found in equable environments. In seasonal environment labor scheduling constraints and unpre­dictable climate require "indirect II energy subsidies, which select for an efficiency response. Social complexity develops in the context of a need for administrative specialists. On the other hand, societies in equable environments can stabilize agricultural production through the application of "direct" energy subsidies. Here the maintenance of a secure flow of energy to the cultural system is a function of inter-societal conflict, which selects for competitive responses. Social complexity in this situation develops from a need for integrating mechanisms that can enlarge the "primary social unit" beyond the capacity of non-hierarchical mechanisms. Calculation of the coefficient of equability provides a means for scaling the potential importance of competition and efficiency in any given environment. Five hypotheses are deduced from theoretical arguments. They concern territorial stability, population size, settlement pattern, specialization, and power centers. Arguments and data are advanced warranting these hypotheses and their archaeological correlates. A case study is presented in which data relevant to the five hypotheses are examined for a complex society in on equable environment. This case study treats the Late Period-Cara occupation of northern high land Ecuador. Most of the data are derived from archaeological investigations and concern the time period between A.D. 1250 and 1525. Pertinent ethnohistoric data, though limited, are also utilized. While data from the Late Period-Cara occupation are supportive of predictions, conclusive and quantitatively precise results await further research. In particular, there are many problems that remain to be resolved for unambiguously assigning meaning to the archeological record.

Document Type

Dissertation

Language

English

Degree Name

Anthropology

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Anthropology

First Committee Member (Chair)

William James Judge

Second Committee Member

Lewis Roberts Binford

Third Committee Member

Karl H. Schwerin

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