TY - JOUR

T1 - The deification of historical figures and the emergence of priesthoods as a solution to a network coordination problem

AU - Dávid-Barrett, Tamás

AU - Carney, James

PY - 2016/10/1

Y1 - 2016/10/1

N2 - Why do historical figures sometimes become the object of religious worship? Here, we propose that, above a certain group-size threshold, maintaining a belief in the continued existence of authority figures after their death preserves group coordination efficiency. That is, we argue that coordination activities in larger groups become more effective when they center on symbolic (although formerly real) bearers of authority; for smaller groups, we claim the opposite occurs. Our argument is pursued by way of a collective action model that makes anthropologically plausible assumptions about human sociality. One key finding is the existence of a group-size threshold that marks the difference between the two different collective action regimes, one with and one without the presence of a deified historical figure. Another is that, in larger groups, priest-like castes naturally emerge as a consequence of the benefits of personally identifying with the deified agent.

AB - Why do historical figures sometimes become the object of religious worship? Here, we propose that, above a certain group-size threshold, maintaining a belief in the continued existence of authority figures after their death preserves group coordination efficiency. That is, we argue that coordination activities in larger groups become more effective when they center on symbolic (although formerly real) bearers of authority; for smaller groups, we claim the opposite occurs. Our argument is pursued by way of a collective action model that makes anthropologically plausible assumptions about human sociality. One key finding is the existence of a group-size threshold that marks the difference between the two different collective action regimes, one with and one without the presence of a deified historical figure. Another is that, in larger groups, priest-like castes naturally emerge as a consequence of the benefits of personally identifying with the deified agent.

KW - Ancestor worship

KW - priesthood

KW - deification

KW - behavioral synchrony

KW - agent-based model

KW - group coordination

U2 - 10.1080/2153599X.2015.1063001

DO - 10.1080/2153599X.2015.1063001

M3 - Journal article

VL - 6

SP - 307

EP - 317

JO - Religion, Brain and Behavior

JF - Religion, Brain and Behavior

SN - 2153-599X

IS - 4

ER -