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The evolution of the shaman's cultural toolkit

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2018

Aiyana K. Willard ,
Yo Nakawake  and
Jonathan Jong
Aiyana K. Willard
Affiliation:
Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, Oxford University, Oxford OX2 6PE, United Kingdom aiyana.willard@anthro.ox.ac.uk yo.nakawake@anthro.ox.ac.uk www.aiyanawillard.com www.sites.google.com/site/ynakawake/home
Yo Nakawake
Affiliation:
Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, Oxford University, Oxford OX2 6PE, United Kingdom aiyana.willard@anthro.ox.ac.uk yo.nakawake@anthro.ox.ac.uk www.aiyanawillard.com www.sites.google.com/site/ynakawake/home
Jonathan Jong
Affiliation:
Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, Oxford University, Oxford OX2 6PE, United Kingdom aiyana.willard@anthro.ox.ac.uk yo.nakawake@anthro.ox.ac.uk www.aiyanawillard.com www.sites.google.com/site/ynakawake/home Centre for Psychology, Behavior & Achievement, Coventry University CV1 5FB, United Kingdom. jonathan.jong@coventry.ac.uk www.jonathanjong.ninja
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Abstract

A complete picture of shamanism's cultural evolution requires an understanding of how the professionalization of shamanism affects the distribution of knowledge within societies. We suggest that limiting knowledge to fewer people could impede the accumulation of functional knowledge within shamanism. On this basis, we make further predictions about how the domain of shamanism could change and collapse.

Information

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 41 , 2018 , e89
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

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