Causes of Polygyny: Ecology, Economy, Kinship, and Warfare
Douglas R. White
University of California, Irvine
Douglas R. White is Professor, School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine, CA 92717.
Search for more papers by this authorMichael L. Burton
University of California, Irvine
Michael L. Burton is Professor, School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine, CA.
Search for more papers by this authorDouglas R. White
University of California, Irvine
Douglas R. White is Professor, School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine, CA 92717.
Search for more papers by this authorMichael L. Burton
University of California, Irvine
Michael L. Burton is Professor, School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine, CA.
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
We discuss and test competing explanations for polygyny based on household economics, malecentered kin groups, warfare, and environmental characteristics. Data consist of codes for 142 societies from the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample, including new codes for polygyny and environmental characteristics. An explanatory model is tested for the worldwide sample using regression analysis, and then replicated with regional samples. We obtain convergent results with two different measures of polygyny, cultural rules for men's marriages and the percentage of women married polygynously. We conclude that the best predictors of polygyny are fraternal interest groups, warfare for capture of women, absence of constraints on expansion into new lands, and environmental quality and homogeneity.
References Cited
- Alexander, R. D., J. Hoogland, R. Howard, K. Noonan, and P. Sherman 1979 Sexual Dimorphisms and Breedings Systems in Pinnipeds, Ungulates, Primates and Humans. in Evolutionary Biology and Human Social Behavior: An Anthropological Perspective. N. Chagnon and W. Irons, eds. Pp. 402–435. North Scituate, MA: Duxbury Press.
- Alvard, Michael S. 1986 Polygyny as a Human Female Reproductive Strategy. Haliksa'i: UNM Contributions to Anthropology 5: 42–56.
- Barry, Herbert, and Alice Schlegel 1982 Cross-Cultural Codes on Contributions by Women to Subsistence. Ethnology 21: 165–188.
- Becker, Gary 1981 A Treatise on the Family. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
- Blumberg, Rae L., and Robert F. Winch 1972 Societal Complexity and Familial Complexity: Evidence for the Curvilinear Hypothesis. American Journal of Sociology 77: 898–920.
- Boserup, Ester 1970 Woman's Role in Economic Development. New York: St. Martin's Press.
- Burton, Michael L., and Karl P. Reitz 1981 The Plow, Female Contribution to Agricultural Subsistence, and Polygyny. Behavior Science Research 16: 275–305.
- Burton, Michael L., and Douglas R. White 1984 Sexual Division of Labor in Agriculture. American Anthropologist 86: 568–583.
- Chagnon, N. 1979 Is Reproductive Success Equal in Egalitarian Society? in Evolutionary Biology and Human Social Behaviors: An Anthropological Perspective. N. Chagnon and W. Irons, eds. Pp. 374–401. North Scituate, MA: Duxbury Press.
- Cohen, R. 1971 Dominance and Defiance. Washington: American Anthropological Association.
- Dorjahn, Vernon R. 1959 The Factor of Polygyny in African Demography. in Continuity and Change in African Cultures.. William R. Bascom and Melville J. Herskovits, eds. Pp. 87–112. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Dow, James 1983 Woman Capture as a Motivation for Warfare. in Rethinking Human Adaptation: Biological and Cultural Models. R. Dyson-Hudson and M. A. Little, eds. Pp. 97–115. Boulder: Westview.
- Dow, Malcolm M., M. L. Burton, D. R. White, and K. P. Reitz 1984 Galton's Problem as Network Autocorrelation. American Ethnologist 11: 754–770.
- Ember, Melvin 1974 Warfare, Sex Ratio, and Polygyny. Ethnology 13: 197–206.
-
Ember, Melvin
1984
Alternative Predictors of Polygyny.
Behavior Science Research
19: 1–23.
10.1177/106939718401900101 Google Scholar
- Engels, Frederick 1972 [1884] The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State. Eleanor B. Leacock, ed. New York: International Publishers.
- Edwin B. Espenshade, ed. 1986 Goode's World Atlas. 17th edition. Chicago: Rand McNally.
- Fortes, Meyer 1949 The Web of Kinship among the Tallensi. London: Oxford University Press.
- Fortes, Meyer 1967 [1945] The Dynamics of Clanship among the Tallensi. Oosterhout, The Netherlands: Anthropological Publications. (Originally published by Oxford University Press).
- Goldschmidt, Walter, and Evalyn J. Kunkel 1971 The Structure of the Peasant Family. American Anthropologist 73: 1058–1076.
- Goody, Jack 1973 Polygyny, Economy and the Role of Women. in The Character of Kinship. Jack Goody, ed. Pp. 175–190. London: Cambridge University Press.
- Goody, Jack 1976 Production and Reproduction. London: Cambridge University Press.
- Grossbard, Amyra S. 1976 An Economic Analysis of Polygyny: The Case of Maiduguri. Current Anthropology 17: 701–707.
- Grossbard, Amyra S. 1980 The Economics of Polygamy. in Research in Population Economics, Vol. 2. J. L. Simon and J. DaVanzo, eds. Pp. 321–350. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
- Grossbard, Amyra S. 1984 A Theory of Allocation of Time in Markets for Labour and Marriage. The Economic Journal 94: 863–882.
- Hartung, J. 1982 Polygyny and the Inheritance of Wealth. Current Anthropology 23: 1–12.
- Heath, Dwight B. 1958 Sexual Division of Labor and Cross-Cultural Research. Social Forces 37: 77–79.
- Kelly, Raymond C. 1985 The Nuer Conquest: The Structure and Development of an Expansionist System. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
- Lee, Gary R. 1979 Marital Structure and Economic Systems. Journal of Marriage and the Family 41: 701–713.
-
Martin,
M. Kay, and
Barbara Voorhies
1975
Female of the Species. New York: Columbia University Press.
10.7312/mart03875 Google Scholar
- Murdock, George P. 1949 Social Structure. New York; Macmillan.
- Murdock, George P. 1967 Ethnographic Atlas. Ethnology 9: 122–225.
- Murdock, George P., and Diana O. Morrow 1970 Subsistence Economy and Supportive Practices: Cross-Cultural Codes 1. Ethnology 9: 302–330.
- Murdock, George P., and Douglas R. White 1969 Standard Cross-Cultural Sample. Ethnology 8: 329–369.
- Murdock, George P., and Suzanne F. Wilson 1972 Settlement Patterns and Community Organization: Cross-Cultural Codes 3. Ethnology 11: 254–295.
- Naroll, Raoul 1962 Data Quality Control. New York: Free Press.
- Osmond, Marie W. 1965 Toward Monogamy: A Cross-Cultural Study of Correlates of Type of Marriage. Social Forces 44: 6–16.
- Otterbein, Keith 1970 The Evolution of War. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.
- Paige, K. E., and J. M. Paige 1981 The Politics of Reproductive Ritual. Berkeley: University of California Press.
- Patterson, Orlando 1982 Slavery and Social Death: A Comparative Study. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
- Rohner, Ronald P., D. Scott Berg, and Evelyn C. Rohner 1982 Data Quality Control in the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample: Cross-Cultural Codes. Ethnology 21: 359–369.
- Spencer, Paul 1980 Polygyny as a Measure of Social Differentiation in Africa. in Numerical Techniques in Social Anthropology. J. Clyde Mitchell, ed. Philadelphia: ISHI Press.
- Steckle, J., and L. Ewanyk 1973 A Consumer Preference Study in Grain Utilization. Preliminary report, Ministry of National Resources, North Eastern State, Nigeria.
- Verdon, Michel 1983 Polygyny, Descent, and Local Fission: A Comparative Hypothesis. Journal of Comparative Family Studies 14: 1–22.
- Wheeler, Valerie 1974 Drums and Guns: A Cross-Cultural Study of the Nature of War. Ph.D. dissertation, Department of Anthropology, University of Oregon.
- White, Douglas, R. 1988 Rethinking Polygyny: Co-Wives, Codes, and Cultural Systems. Current Anthropology 29: 529–572.
- White, Douglas R., Michael L. Burton, and Malcolm M. Dow 1981 Sexual Division of Labor in African Agriculture. American Anthropologist 83: 824–849.
- White, Douglas R., John W. M. Whiting, and Michael L. Burton 1986 Climate and Subsistence Codes. World Cultures 2(2).
- Whiting, J. W. M. 1977 Paper presented at meetings of Society for Cross-Cultural Research, East Lansing, Michigan.
- Whiting, J. W. M. 1986 Play it Again Sam: A New Paradigm for Cross-Cultural Research. Paper presented at meetings of Society for Cross-Cultural Research, San Diego, California.
- Whiting, John W. M., John A. Sodergren, and Stephen M. Stigler 1982 Winter Temperature as a Constraint to the Migration of Preindustrial Peoples. American Anthropologist 84: 279–298.
-
Whiting, John W. M., and
Beatrice B. Whiting
1975
Aloofness and Intimacy of Husbands and Wives: A Cross-Cultural Study.
Ethos
6: 183–207.
10.1525/eth.1975.3.2.02a00080 Google Scholar
- Whyte, M. 1978 Cross-Cultural Codes Dealing with the Relative Status of Women. Ethnology 17: 211–237.
- Whyte, M. 1985 Independent Variables for Testing Hypotheses on the Status of Women. World Cultures 1(4).
- Witkowski, S. 1975 Polygyny, Age of Marriage, and Female Status. Paper presented at meetings of American Anthropological Association, San Francisco, CA.
Citing Literature
December 1988
Pages 871-887