Economic Game Behavior Among the Shuar
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چکیده
P cross-cultural research on decisionmaking in economic games by Joseph Henrich and his colleagues (Henrich, Boyd, . . . McElreath 2004; Henrich, Boyd, . . . Henrich 2005) revealed both substantial variation across cultures and substantial deviation from the predictions of traditional economic models. Some of the most “selfish” behavior, as measured by offers in the ultimatum game, was observed in the smallest-scale societies, such as the Machiguenga, Quichua, and Hadza. These societies are characterized by both relatively small social groups and relatively low market integration. However, the same can be said of the Ache and the Achuar, who exhibited offers trending typically toward even splits. Although these cultures share many features, such as small social scale and subsistence ways of life, they also differ in myriad ways, including, among many other factors, different cultural histories and ecologies. What combination of factors best explains the distribution of offers seen within and between cultures? The Shuar of Ecuador are an interesting population to investigate in this regard, especially when compared to the Achuar, Quichua, and Machiguenga populations examined in prior research. Culturally, the Shuar are most similar to the Achuar. The two populations have languages that, for the most part, are mutually intelligible, they share many customs and cultural practices, and they are descended from the same ancestral culture. Both, like the Machiguenga, are highly individualistic cultures in many ways, and traditionally neither has a political organization above the level of household or extended family (Harner 1972; Johnson 2000). Compared to the Achuar, however, the Shuar have a longer history of economic and cultural exchange with the Spanish colonial culture of highland Ecuador, as well as a higher degree of market integration (Blackwell et al. 2009; Bremner and Lu 2006; Lu 2007; Rubenstein 2001; Rudel, Bates, and Machinguiashi 2002). Geographically, they exhibit substantial overlap with the Quichua, sometimes living in the same villages and in essentially the same economic circumstances. In prior research, however, Quichua exhibited very different economic decisionmaking than Achuar living in the same community (Patton 2004). Interestingly, the Quichua are known locally for higher degrees of market integration and market savvy than the Achuar, and yet they exhibited lower offers in the UG, behavior that is generally more consistent with less market integration. Chinimpi, the Shuar village where we played the games presented in this study, is situated toward the middle to upper end of the spectrum of market integration among Shuar communities. The most market-integrated Shuar communities are those situated in or near the relatively large and long-established cities of Macas and Sucua, where there have been Shuar merchants and businesspeople for many years. One study, conducted in provinces north of our study site, found that rates of wage labor among five indigenous groups (Quichua, Shuar, Secoya, Cofan, and Huaorani) Chapter 10
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تاریخ انتشار 2014