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Variable cultural acquisition costs may explain contextual variation in peer cultures

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 July 2026

Alex Mesoudi Open the ORCID record for Alex Mesoudi [Opens in a new window]
Alex Mesoudi*
Affiliation:
Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK a.mesoudi@exeter.ac.uk https://www.alexmesoudi.com/
*
*Corresponding author.
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Abstract

Lew-Levy and Amir highlight contextual variation across both traits and societies in the influence of childhood peer cultures on mainstream adult culture. I suggest that this contextual variation can be explained in part by variable cultural acquisition costs, where some traits (e.g., technology) and societies (e.g., post-industrial) comprise accumulated cultural knowledge that is too costly for children to acquire.

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Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 49 , 2026 , e241
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2026. Published by Cambridge University Press

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