What do you think?
Rate this book
Hunter-Gatherer Childhoods: Evolutionary, Developmental, and Cultural Perspectives
In the vast anthropological literature devoted to hunter-gatherer societies, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the place of hunter-gatherer children. Children often represent 40 percent of hunter-gatherer populations, thus nearly half the population is omitted from most hunter-gatherer ethnographies and research. This volume is designed to bridge the gap in our understanding of the daily lives, knowledge, and development of hunter-gatherer children.
The twenty-six contributors to Hunter-Gatherer Childhoods use three general but complementary theoretical approaches--evolutionary, developmental, cultural--in their presentations of new and insightful ethnographic data. For instance, the authors employ these theoretical orientations to provide the first systematic studies of hunter-gatherer children's hunting, play, infant care by children, weaning and expressions of grief. The chapters focus on understanding the daily life experiences of children, and their views and feelings about their lives and cultural change. Chapters address some of the following why does childhood exist, who cares for hunter-gatherer children, what are the characteristic features of hunter-gatherer children's development and what are the impacts of culture change on hunter-gatherer child care?
The book is divided into five parts. The first section provides historical, theoretical and conceptual framework for the volume; the second section examines data to test competing hypotheses regarding why childhood is particularly long in humans; the third section expands on the second section by looking at who cares for hunter-gatherer children; the fourth section explores several developmental issues such as weaning, play and loss of loved ones; and, the final section examines the impact of sedentism and schools on hunter-gatherer children.
This pioneering volume will help to stimulate further research and scholarship on hunter-gatherer childhoods, thereby advancing our understanding of the way of life that characterized most of human history and of the processes that may have shaped both human development and human evolution.
The twenty-six contributors to Hunter-Gatherer Childhoods use three general but complementary theoretical approaches--evolutionary, developmental, cultural--in their presentations of new and insightful ethnographic data. For instance, the authors employ these theoretical orientations to provide the first systematic studies of hunter-gatherer children's hunting, play, infant care by children, weaning and expressions of grief. The chapters focus on understanding the daily life experiences of children, and their views and feelings about their lives and cultural change. Chapters address some of the following why does childhood exist, who cares for hunter-gatherer children, what are the characteristic features of hunter-gatherer children's development and what are the impacts of culture change on hunter-gatherer child care?
The book is divided into five parts. The first section provides historical, theoretical and conceptual framework for the volume; the second section examines data to test competing hypotheses regarding why childhood is particularly long in humans; the third section expands on the second section by looking at who cares for hunter-gatherer children; the fourth section explores several developmental issues such as weaning, play and loss of loved ones; and, the final section examines the impact of sedentism and schools on hunter-gatherer children.
This pioneering volume will help to stimulate further research and scholarship on hunter-gatherer childhoods, thereby advancing our understanding of the way of life that characterized most of human history and of the processes that may have shaped both human development and human evolution.
484 pages, Hardcover
First published June 15, 2005
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 25, 2012
This book was FASCINATING!
It is also just science. It's extremely dry. Lots of numbers, graphs and attempts to quantify things that are really hard to quantify. All the big, intellectual words make me feel warm and fuzzy. There is something very comforting about academia-speak...
The average hunter gatherer mom spends 75% of her day with her baby. Her baby is with other people 25% of the time. I love knowing this and this is exactly how I feel about my own baby. He is awake for 12 hours. I am totally happy to spend 9 of them with him. 3 hours off every day sounds perfect.
The average hunter gather band is about 30 people, 15 of which are children. Bands are fluid and always changing. Babies have lots of people enter and depart from their lives.
So much more I want to add! Mostly that the Continuum Concept is super inaccurate and anyone who read that should read this book to recover. HUNTER GATHERERS DO NOT HOLD THEIR BABIES 100% OF THE TIME. THEY DO NOT CARRY THEM IN SLINGS IN CULTURES WHERE IT IS NOT NECESSARY FOR THEIR SAFETY and even in those cultures, they do not spend all day in the sling.
It is also just science. It's extremely dry. Lots of numbers, graphs and attempts to quantify things that are really hard to quantify. All the big, intellectual words make me feel warm and fuzzy. There is something very comforting about academia-speak...
The average hunter gatherer mom spends 75% of her day with her baby. Her baby is with other people 25% of the time. I love knowing this and this is exactly how I feel about my own baby. He is awake for 12 hours. I am totally happy to spend 9 of them with him. 3 hours off every day sounds perfect.
The average hunter gather band is about 30 people, 15 of which are children. Bands are fluid and always changing. Babies have lots of people enter and depart from their lives.
So much more I want to add! Mostly that the Continuum Concept is super inaccurate and anyone who read that should read this book to recover. HUNTER GATHERERS DO NOT HOLD THEIR BABIES 100% OF THE TIME. THEY DO NOT CARRY THEM IN SLINGS IN CULTURES WHERE IT IS NOT NECESSARY FOR THEIR SAFETY and even in those cultures, they do not spend all day in the sling.
March 13, 2012
Wow!
All the different ways mamas mama!
All the different ways mamas mama!
December 1, 2020
It is dull repetitive and only suitable for people seriously into research in this area
June 30, 2010
for Anthr 3305
February 4, 2018
Very interesting. I recommend reading with Hierarchy in the Forest for better understanding of hunter-gatherer society.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews