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Commencement Tea

The Perfect Stranger: Resource Access and the Evolution of Out-Group Relationships

Anne Pisor's public dissertation defense

Unlike non-human primates, humans are highly tolerant of out-group strangers, as evidenced by the ethnographic and archaeological records; however, very little research has addressed when and why people build relationships with out-group individuals. What selection pressures might have favored inter-group relationship building in humans? As smoothing resource access has been crucial in the human foraging ecology, I suggest that relationships with out-group members may provide access to non-local resources and buffer resource shortfalls striking entire communities. The relevance of out-group relationships is not limited to small-scale or prehistoric contexts either, as out-group members can also provide access to difficult-to-access resources like market items. My research program is focused on the above question; in my dissertation, I address three components of it: Which social and ecological factors favor out-group relationships? What do people look for when picking partners from out-groups? When people value out-group members, will they avoid costly behavior to avoid harming out-group members? I will present data from three populations of Bolivian horticulturalists and the World Values Survey that provide some preliminary answers.

Professor Hoelle Receives Top Book Award

Rainforest Cowboys: The Rise of Ranching and Cattle Culture in Western Amazonia

4th Anthropology Graduate Student Symposium

4th Anthropology Graduate Student Symposium

Sarah Bay takes 3rd place in UCSB Undergrad Slam!

Photography as Narrative: Visual Storytelling and Impactful Images in Anthropology

2016–17 Central Continuing Student Fellowships

The Department of Anthropology congratulates the following graduate students