BaYaka Adolescent Boys Nominate Accessible Adult Men as Preferred Spear Hunting Models

Lew‐Levy, Sheina; Milks, Annemieke; Ntamboudila, Francy Kiabiya; Broesch, Tanya; Kline, Michelle A.

doi:10.1086/716853

Cited by 15 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Our previous research demonstrated that while spear hunting is widely practised by BaYaka, they consider it to be an especially complex task [22]. We found that most spear hunting knowledge transmission reportedly occurred from fathers and other closely related male kin, primarily via teaching [22,46]. The present study builds on this work by investigating the types of teaching that contribute to BaYaka spear hunting knowledge acquisition.…”

Section: Ethnographic Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 80%

“…All models included a fixed effect for pupil age in years estimated using the methods outlined in [46,55], and a fixed effect for pupil experience estimated as the total number of prey previously speared by the pupil (log-transformed as log( x + 1)). To facilitate estimation, these variables were z- score standardized.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Following BaYaka views on maturity, all unmarried male adolescents and young adults ( n = 24) inhabiting the larger two village neighbourhoods at the time of data collection participated in an interview (see [46] for full details). We assessed previous adolescent spear hunting experiences by asking them to list the number and species of animals they had successfully spear hunted in the past.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…All models included a fixed effect for pupil age in years estimated using the methods outlined in [46,55], and a fixed effect royalsocietypublishing.org/journal/rspb Proc. R. Soc.…”

Section: (E) Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

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Costly teaching contributes to the acquisition of spear hunting skill among BaYaka forager adolescents

et al. 2022

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Teaching likely evolved in humans to facilitate the faithful transmission of complex tasks. As the oldest evidenced hunting technology, spear hunting requires acquiring several complex physical and cognitive competencies. In this study, we used observational and interview data collected among BaYaka foragers (Republic of the Congo) to test the predictions that costlier teaching types would be observed at a greater frequency than less costly teaching in the domain of spear hunting and that teachers would calibrate their teaching to pupil skill level. To observe naturalistic teaching during spear hunting, we invited teacher–pupil groupings to spear hunt while wearing GoPro cameras. We analysed 68 h of footage totalling 519 teaching episodes. Most observed teaching events were costly. Direct instruction was the most frequently observed teaching type. Older pupils received less teaching and more opportunities to lead the spear hunt than their younger counterparts. Teachers did not appear to adjust their teaching to pupil experience, potentially because age was a more easily accessible heuristic for pupil skill than experience. Our study shows that costly teaching is frequently used to transmit complex tasks and that instruction may play a privileged role in the transmission of spear hunting knowledge.

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Section: Ethnographic Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 80%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…All models included a fixed effect for pupil age in years estimated using the methods outlined in [46,55], and a fixed effect royalsocietypublishing.org/journal/rspb Proc. R. Soc.…”

Section: (E) Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Costly teaching contributes to the acquisition of spear hunting skill among BaYaka forager adolescents

et al. 2022

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“…Dutch, British, Italian, and Singaporean adolescents favored the opinions of their peers when complying with rules (Westhoff et al, 2020), subjectively evaluating risk (Knoll et al, 2017) and sharing (Ruggeri et al, 2018). Yet in other areas—such as in estimating tasks where objectively correct responses were possible (Molleman et al, 2019), hunting (Lew‐Levy et al, 2021), and acquiring innovations (Hewlett, 2021)—Indian, BaYaka (Republic of the Congo), Aka (Central African Republic), and Chabu (Ethiopia) adolescents preferred to learn from adults. Together, these findings suggest that adolescent learning depends on the domain being transmitted.…”

Section: Peer Learning Is Selective and Changes Throughout Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Peer learning and cultural evolution

Lew‐Levy

Bos

Corriveau

et al. 2023

Child Dev Perspectives

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In this article, we integrate cultural evolutionary theory with empirical research from developmental psychology, cultural anthropology, and primatology to explore the role of peer learning in the development of complex instrumental skills and behavioral norms. We show that instrumental imitation, contingent teaching, generative collaboration, and selective copying contribute to domain‐specific transmission of knowledge between peers. Stages of development and characteristics inherent to the learner and model influence how and when children learn from each other. Peer learning is persistent across societies despite cultural beliefs that favor adult–child transmission in some settings. Comparative research hints at the possibility that children's greater motivation to interact with and learn from each other may set humans apart from other primates. We conclude by outlining avenues for future research, including how individual characteristics and developmental changes in social networks, motivation, and cognition may contribute to cultural evolution.

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Intergroup Cooperation in Shotgun Hunting Among BaYaka Foragers and Yambe Farmers from the Republic of the Congo

Kandza

Jang

Ntamboudila

et al. 2023

Hum Nat

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Whereas many evolutionary models emphasize within-group cooperation or between-group competition in explaining human large-scale cooperation, recent work highlights a critical role for intergroup cooperation in human adaptation. Here we investigate intergroup cooperation in the domain of shotgun hunting in northern Republic of the Congo. In the Congo Basin broadly, forest foragers maintain relationships with neighboring farmers based on systems of exchange regulated by norms and institutions such as fictive kinship. In this study, we examine how relationships between Yambe farmers and BaYaka foragers support stable intergroup cooperation in the domain of shotgun hunting. In the study village, shotgun hunting is based on a specialization-based exchange wherein Yambe farmers contribute shotguns and access to markets to buy cartridges and sell meat while BaYaka foragers contribute their specialized forest knowledge and skill. To understand how costs and benefits are distributed, we conducted structured interviews with 77 BaYaka hunters and 15 Yambe gun owners and accompanied hunters on nine hunting trips. We found that hunts are organized in a conventional manner within a fictive kinship structure, consistent with the presence of intercultural mechanisms to stabilize cooperation. However, because bushmeat demand is high, gun owners can gain significant cash profit, while compensating hunters only with cigarettes, alcohol, and a traditional hunter’s portion of meat. To level payoffs, hunters strategically hide kills or cartridges from gun owners to feed their own families. Our results illustrate how each group prioritizes different currencies (e.g., cash, meat, family, intergroup relations) and provide insights into how intergroup cooperation is stabilized in this setting. The example of this long-standing intergroup cooperative system is discussed in terms of its contemporary entwinement with logging, the bushmeat trade, and growing market intersection.

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BaYaka Adolescent Boys Nominate Accessible Adult Men as Preferred Spear Hunting Models

Cited by 15 publications

References 47 publications

Costly teaching contributes to the acquisition of spear hunting skill among BaYaka forager adolescents

Costly teaching contributes to the acquisition of spear hunting skill among BaYaka forager adolescents

Peer learning and cultural evolution

Intergroup Cooperation in Shotgun Hunting Among BaYaka Foragers and Yambe Farmers from the Republic of the Congo

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