Pathogen prevalence, group bias, and collectivism in the standard cross-cultural sample

Hum Nat. 2013 Mar;24(1):59-75. doi: 10.1007/s12110-012-9159-3.

Abstract

It has been argued that people in areas with high pathogen loads will be more likely to avoid outsiders, to be biased in favor of in-groups, and to hold collectivist and conformist values. Cross-national studies have supported these predictions. In this paper we provide new pathogen codes for the 186 cultures of the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample and use them, together with existing pathogen and ethnographic data, to try to replicate these cross-national findings. In support of the theory, we found that cultures in high pathogen areas were more likely to socialize children toward collectivist values (obedience rather than self-reliance). There was some evidence that pathogens were associated with reduced adult dispersal. However, we found no evidence of an association between pathogens and our measures of group bias (in-group loyalty and xenophobia) or intergroup contact.

MeSH terms

  • Cross-Cultural Comparison
  • Disease*
  • Epidemiology*
  • Group Processes
  • Humans
  • Prevalence
  • Social Behavior*
  • Social Conformity