Charles Stanish Knihy

Exploring the dynamics of cooperation in stateless societies, the book delves into how small groups without traditional structures establish sustainable norms. It emphasizes the role of ritual as a mechanism for organizing behavior and fostering cooperation, drawing on insights from game theory, ethnography, and archaeology. The author presents a theoretical framework to understand collective action and highlights the evolution of cooperation through global ethnographic and archaeological examples. This transdisciplinary approach appeals to those interested in human evolution and social organization.

Argues that major theories in Andean anthropology are not exclusive and competing models, but rather can be understood as variations within a larger theoretical framework