Work

Methods for studying cultural attraction

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: Cultural attraction theory (CAT) describes a general evolutionary process, cultural attraction, by which the spread and stability of cultural items (beliefs, practices, artifacts, etc.) result not just from differential reproduction, but also from transformations that systematically favor the reconstruction of cultural items of specific types. In this way, CAT aims to provide a general framework for the study of cultural evolution. In a thoughtful critical analysis, Buskell questions the ability of CAT to provide methodological guidance for research in cultural evolution. Can CAT be used to develop the sort of mid-range theories and models that often drive empirical work? Here we argue that CAT can indeed be used in this way, and we outline the methodological practices that students of cultural attraction have used and are currently developing.

Source: Evolutionary Anthropology Issues News and Reviews

DOI: 10.1002/evan.21764

Authors: Christophe Heintz, Stefaan Blancke, Thom Scott‐Phillips

Institutions: Central European University, Central European University - Budapest Campus, Tilburg University, Durham University

Language: English

Topic: Language and cultural evolution

Subfield: Cultural Studies

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: FP7 Ideas: European Research Council

Award: Constructing Social Minds: Coordination, Communication, and Cultural Transmission