Collective Action in the Formation of Pre-Modern StatesAnthropological archaeology and other disciplines concerned with the formation of early complex societies are undergoing a theoretical shift stemming from the realization that the social evolution of complex societies was more varied and complex than imagined. Given the need for new directions in theory, the book proposes that anthropologists look to political science, especially the rational choice theory of collective action. Collective action theorists propose that state formation results from the strategic behavior of rational and self-interested actors who make up the polity, including a political elite and those outside the official structure of the state. The theory proposes that the form taken by a state will depend on the “bargaining power”, of rulers and taxpayers. Where taxpayers have more resources with which to bargain, it is predicted that rulers will concede benefits to taxpayers and will agree to restrictions on their power. The authors subject collective action theory to a methodologically rigorous evaluation using systematic cross-cultural analysis based on a world-wide sample of societies. The results presented here indicate strong support for most elements of the theory, but some results, in particular those pertaining to the control of ruler behavior, suggest the possibility that there are contexts in which collective action may play out in ways not anticipated by the theory. While this type of theoretical modeling is commonly seen in political science research, this volume is unique in its approach from an anthropological and archaeological viewpoint. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 93
... theory and method. The senior author benefited from the positive and thoughtful reactions to presentations he made at the Department of Anthropology of the Field Museum, at Northwestern University, at Indiana University, and at the ...
... Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Validity and Replicability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Is Collective Action More or Less Likely to Develop in Some ...
... Interaction and State Formation. . . . 37 Sub-Saharan Africa and Neoevolutionist Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Local Histories of the Sub-Saharan African Societies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Nupe ...
... Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Need for New Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beyond Neoevolutionism: Bringing More People Into Governance. . . Local Histories of the ...
... Action Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 Were Taxpayers More Compliant in the More Collective States? . . . . 253 Validity and Reliability of the Research Results. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 The “Main Model” of ...
Contents
1 | |
4 | |
12 | |
Archaeological and Historical Contexts | 33 |
Figure | 52 |
Local Histories of the Southeast Asian Societies | 56 |
Figure | 61 |
IndoGangetic Vedic Period and Early Historic Later Vedic Period Second Urbanism Phase | 62 |
Figure A210 | 311 |
5 | 314 |
77 | 317 |
Bugada Figure A27 | 320 |
8 | 325 |
79 | 329 |
81 | 331 |
10 | 332 |
and rice production in South Asia | 69 |
Figure A28 | 77 |
Revenue Sources | 112 |
Operationalizing Internal and External Revenues Summary of Revenue Sources Coding Summary Nupe External Yoruba External Asante Mixed 62 | 119 |
68 | 120 |
73 | 129 |
Public Goods | 133 |
74 | 149 |
Figure A29 | 150 |
Bureaucratization | 165 |
75 | 167 |
Nupe Figure A21 Environment Agriculture and Area 14100 sq km Rural Society and Culture Market System Geography Population WorldEconomy... | 195 |
Table | 200 |
Modes of Control of Principals | 203 |
Is State | 249 |
Cultural Code or Rational Actors in the Evolution | 256 |
Table 101 | 260 |
Table 107 Mean values and value ranges for public goods | 262 |
Collective Action Processes at WorldEconomy | 266 |
285 | 267 |
114 | 284 |
Table 111 Examples of kinds of state involvement in rural | 286 |
Table 121 Bivariate correlation coefficients for public goods | 293 |
12 | 338 |
89 | 340 |
90 | 345 |
15 | 346 |
92 | 347 |
94 | 348 |
98 | 350 |
17 | 352 |
19 | 360 |
107 | 363 |
Japan Figure A220 | 366 |
21 | 373 |
Rome Figure A223 | 380 |
limits of the Venetian polity | 386 |
England Figure A225 | 388 |
113 | 396 |
114 | 403 |
Description of Coded Variables and the Coded | 404 |
117 | 423 |
252 | 426 |
Author Index | 439 |
Other editions - View all
Collective Action in the Formation of Pre-Modern States Richard Blanton,Lane Fargher Limited preview - 2008 |
Collective Action in the Formation of Pre-Modern States Richard Blanton,Lane Fargher No preview available - 2010 |