Teaching is associated with the transmission of opaque culture and leadership across 23 egalitarian hunter-gatherer societies

Zachary H. Garfield () and Sheina Lew-Levy
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Zachary H. Garfield: University Mohammed VI Polytechnic
Sheina Lew-Levy: Durham University

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Abstract Despite extensive work on the evolution of cooperation, the roles of teaching and leadership in transmitting opaque cultural norms—foundations of cooperative behaviors—are underexplored. Similarly, while teaching is well-studied in the evolution of instrumental culture, little attention is given to its role in transmitting opaque culture, such as social values and norms. Transmitting opaque culture often requires teaching, and group leaders are well-positioned to facilitate this process. Using comparative ethnographic data, we explore teaching, leadership, and instrumental versus opaque culture by examining whether opaque culture is primarily transmitted via teaching, which age groups tend to learn these norms, and whether leaders are disproportionately involved in teaching. Drawing on ethnographic data from 23 egalitarian foraging societies, we find teaching is more strongly associated with transmitting cultural values and kinship knowledge than subsistence skills and is closely linked to opaque culture and leadership. Leader-directed teaching may drive cooperation, suggesting new research avenues.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-58764-9

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