Quiz 8 Questions

Question 1

Coding data ethnographic data is a careful and calculated process. Based on what you know about MHGs and BSP, what is the following excerpt on Ontong Java most likely an example of?: “Other examples might be given to illustrate the principle that the kipua are always ready to punish those who fail to do their duty towards their relatives… The belief in immortality thus plays its part in securing the execution of obligations between relatives, especially within the joint family. When a person is afflicted with disease the community at large discusses the question to see if he has fulfilled his obligations.” (Hogbin, 1934, pp 150-151)

– A god that approximates an MHG.
– A strong example of an MHG.
– An example of deceased ancestral spirits.
– An example of an inanimate, impersonal
supernatural force or law.

Answer 1

– An example of deceased ancestral spirits.

Question 2

According to Watts et al (2018), how is social inequality represented in population structure?

– Social inequality stratifies a population into classes
based on differences in inherited authority and
power and does not always affect a population’s
connectedness.
– Social inequality stratifies a population into classes
based on differences in inherited authority and
power and typically decreases a population’s
connectedness over time.
– Social inequality stratifies a population into classes
based on differences in inherited wealth and status
and typically decreases a population’s
connectedness over time.
– Social inequality stratifies a population into classes
based on differences in inherited wealth and status
and does not always affect a population’s
connectedness.

Answer 2

– Social inequality stratifies a population into classes
based on differences in inherited wealth and status
and does not always affect a population’s
connectedness.

Question 3

What is the coevolutionary relationship between BSP and political complexity?

– BSP facilitates the evolution of political complexity
but does not play a role in sustaining it.
– BSP facilitates the evolution of political complexity
and plays a role in sustaining it.
– BSP does not facilitate the evolution of political
complexity but does play a role in sustaining it.
– BSP does not facilitate the evolution of political
complexity and does not play a role in sustaining it.

Answer 3

– BSP facilitates the evolution of political complexity

but does not play a role in sustaining it.

Question 4

Stress is thought to
–	increase ritualized behaviour
–	increase semantic ritual complexity
–	decrease belief in moralizing high gods
–	all of the above

Answer 4

– increase ritualized behaviour

Question 5

Watts et al (2018) found year of missionary arrival to be a significant predictor of conversion time to Christianity. What might this indicate?

– Missionaries adopted more successful tactics such
as winning over local authority figures in recent
times.
– Missionaries adopted more successful tactics such
as learning local languages in recent times.
– Native populations became predisposed to
conversion due to cultural fatigue in recent times.
– Native populations became predisposed to
conversion having observed previously converted
neighbours in recent times.

Answer 5

– Missionaries adopted more successful tactics such

as learning local languages in recent times.

Question 6

Which of the following is an example/s of a
constrained evolutionary model?

1. A culture that goes from egalitarian to highly
   stratified, or vice versa, and must transition through
   moderate stratification at all times.
2. A culture that goes from egalitarian to highly
   stratified, or vice versa, and can directly transition
   from high stratification back to egalitarian, and vice
   versa.
3. A culture that goes from highly stratified to
   egalitarian, but can only directly transition from
   highly stratified to egalitarian through moderate
   stratification.
   – 1 and 3
   – 1, 2 and 3
   – 1 and 2
   – 2

Answer 6

– 1 and 3

Question 7

What do Watts et al (2016) caution about their findings regarding ritual human sacrifice and high social stratification?

– High social stratification was often lost in
Austronesian cultures.
– High social stratification was rarely lost in
Austronesian cultures.
– High social stratification was overall rare in
Austronesian cultures.
– High social stratification is difficult to distinguish
from moderate social stratification in Austronesian
cultures.

Answer 7

– High social stratification was rarely lost in

Austronesian cultures.

Question 8

How does the frequency of MHGs compare to BSP across Austronesia?

– MHGs are much less widespread than BSP and it is
plausible that they may have been borrowed from
Abrahamic religions.
– MHGs are slightly less widespread than BSP and it
is plausible that they may have been borrowed from
Abrahamic religions.
– MHGs are much less widespread than BSP and they
most likely evolved independently of Abrahamic
religions.
– MHGs are much less widespread than BSP and they
most likely evolved independently of Abrahamic
religions.

Answer 8

– MHGs are much less widespread than BSP and it is
plausible that they may have been borrowed from
Abrahamic religions.

Question 9

Cultures that have some inherited differences in wealth and status with some possibility of status change are considered to be:
        	–	Egalitarian.
		–	Moderately complex.
		–	Highly stratified.
		–	Moderately stratified.

Answer 9

– Moderately stratified.

Question 10

Which of the following best summarises Austronesian reactions to Christian missionary efforts?
– Reactions ranged from resistant to violent.
– Reactions were mostly resistant.
– Reactions were mostly hospitable.
– Reactions ranged from hospitable to
violent.

Answer 10

– Reactions ranged from hospitable to violent.

Question 11

What is the coevolutionary relationship between MHGs and political complexity?
– MHGs facilitate the evolution of political complexity
and play a role in sustaining it once it has arisen.
– MHGs facilitate the evolution of political complexity
but do not play a role in sustaining it once it has
arisen.
– MHGs follow political complexity and play a role in
sustaining it once it has arisen.
– MHGs follow political complexity but do not play a
role in sustaining it once it has arisen

Answer 11

– MHGs follow political complexity but do not play a

role in sustaining it once it has arisen

Question 12

Which predictions of the social control hypothesis did Watts et al (2016) find HELD for ritual human sacrifice in Austronesian cultures?

– Ritual human sacrifice likely increased the chance
of evolving an inherited class system and stabilizing
it once it had arisen.
– Ritual human sacrifice likely increased the chance
of evolving an inherited class system but not
stabilizing it once it had arisen.
– “Ritual human sacrifice and social strafication likely
coevolved in Austronesia, with ritual human
sacrifice increasing the chance of evolving an
inherited class system and stabilizing it once it had
arisen.”
– “Ritual human sacrifice and social strafication likely
coevolved in Austronesia, with ritual human
sacrifice increasing the chance of evolving an
inherited class system but not stabilizing it once it
had arisen.”

Answer 12

– “Ritual human sacrifice and social strafication likely
coevolved in Austronesia, with ritual human
sacrifice increasing the chance of evolving an
inherited class system and stabilizing it once it had
arisen.”

Question 13

What are the predictions of the social control hypothesis for the evolution of ritual human sacrifice in Austronesia?

– Ritual human sacrifice will increase the chance of
evolving structured social inequality and reduce the
chance of losing structured social inequality.
– “Ritual human sacrifice will not increase the chance
of evolving structured social inequality, but will
reduce the chance of losing structured social
inequality.”
– Ritual human sacrifice and structured social
inequality will show reciprocal evolutionary change.
Ritual human sacrifice will both increase the chance
of evolving structured social inequality and reduce
the chance of losing structured social inequality.
– Ritual human sacrifice and structured social
inequality will exhibit reciprocal evolutionary
change. Ritual human sacrifice will increase the
chance of evolving structured social inequality but
not reduce the chance of losing structured social
inequality.

Answer 13

– Ritual human sacrifice and structured social
inequality will show reciprocal evolutionary change.
Ritual human sacrifice will both increase the chance
of evolving structured social inequality and reduce
the chance of losing structured social inequality.

Question 14

Under acute stress individuals tend to exhibit (tick all that apply)
–	more rigid behaviour
–	more repetitive behaviour
–	less rigid behaviour
–	less repetitive behaviour

Answer 14

– more rigid behaviour

– more repetitive behaviour

Question 15

Watts et al (2018) found cultural isolation to be a significant predictor of conversion time to Christianity. What might this indicate?

– Societies with less contact to other cultures may be
more open to foreigners which explains their
shorter conversion time.
– Societies with less contact to other cultures may be
more resistant to foreigners which explains their
longer conversion time.
– Societies with more contact to other cultures may
be more resistant to foreigners which explains their
longer conversion time.
– Societies with more contact with to other cultures
may be more open to foreigners which explains
their shorter conversion time.

Answer 15

– Societies with more contact to other cultures may
be more resistant to foreigners which explains their
longer conversion time.

Question 16

Why is ritual human sacrifice hypothesised to be an effective means for legitimizing social stratification?

– It is a practice of the social elite that is hard to
eradicate and removes the possibility of victim
reprisal.
– It is a practice of the social elite that is hard to
eradicate that locates ultimate responsibility in the
supernatural realm.
– It is a practice that removes the possibility of victim
reprisal and efficiently utilizes the fears of
spectators.
– It is a practice that removes the possibility of victim
reprisal and locates ultimate responsibility in the
supernatural realm.

Answer 16

– It is a practice that removes the possibility of victim
reprisal and locates ultimate responsibility in the
supernatural realm.

Question 17

What is most TRUE of MHGs?
- MHGs are interested in the daily, mundane
activities of humans.
- MHGs are interested in the activities of humans as
pretrains to kin matters
- MHGS are interested in monitoring and enforcing
large-scale moral conduct
- MHGs are external and infallible

Answer 17

• MHGS are interested in monitoring and enforcing

large-scale moral conduct

Question 18

What did Watts et al (2018) find to be the strongest predictor of conversion time to Christianity?

• Social inequality
• Population structure
• Population size
• Cultural isolation

Answer 18

• Population size

Question 19

What are pathways by which all cultures acquire novel cultural variation (innovations), such as Christianity, from a macroevolutionary perspective?

Answer 19

• Cultural traits can be independently generated
  within cultures, inherited by descent by cultures, or
  borrowed from different cultures.

Question 20

What do watts et al (2018) suggest is important to the spread of novel cultural variations (innovations), such as Christianity, in a sizable population from a microevolutionary perspective?

Answer 20

• The average number of ties an individual has to

Christian converts

Question 21

In their analyses of the spread of Christianity, watts et al (2018) removed cultures with no political complexity and found that this variable was no longer a significant predictor of conversion. What does this indicate?

Answer 21

• Faster conversion may be driven by the longer
  conversion times of societies with no political
  complexity.

Question 22

How widespread was ritual sacrifice in traditional Austronesian cultures and what was its purpose?
- Practice of human sacrifice was widespread but
mostly confined to punishing breaches of customs
and taboos.
- Practice of human sacrifice was widespread and
greatly varied in its circumstance of use.

Answer 22

• Practice of human sacrifice was widespread and

greatly varied in its circumstance of use.

Question 23

Human sacrifice was more common in what type of culture according to watts et al (2016)?

Answer 23

• Highly stratified

Question 24

Bottom-Down Theories of conversion argue that inherited differences in wealth and status may encourage conversion to Christianity. What is the underlying hypothesis?

Answer 24

-	Christianity may appeal to the lower class for its 
        equality-promoting doctrine.

Question 25

How do Watts et al (2015) operationalize high political complexity?

Answer 25

• Culture with two or more levels of jurisdictional

hierarchy beyond the local community.

Question 26

Emil Durkhiem suggested that individuals in a ritual show

Answer 26

• High conformity.

Question 27

What do Watts et al. (2016) find for the effect of ritual human sacrifice on low, moderate, and high social stratification?
- Ritual human sacrifice drove moderate and high
social stratification but not low stratification, and
stabilized high stratification once it has arisen.
- Ritual human sacrifice drove moderate and high
social stratification but not low stratification, and
stabilized stratification once it has arisen.

Answer 27

• Ritual human sacrifice drove moderate and high
  social stratification but not low stratification, and
  stabilized stratification once it has arisen.

Question 28

The study with Karl and Fischer (2019) showed that ritualized behaviour…

Answer 28

• Reduced the heart rate for participants that were

stressed.