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Alcohol and the rise of complex societies

A cross-cultural study tests the extent to which the consumption of wine and beer facilitated the evolution of human societies

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig conducted a cross-cultural study of 186 non-industrial societies to test the 'drunk hypothesis', which posits that traditional fermented beverages such as wine and beer facilitated the emergence of complex, hierarchical societies. Using advanced comparative ethnology and causal inference methods, the researchers found a positive, yet modest, correlation between alcohol consumption and political complexity. Factors such as agriculture were found to have a stronger influence. These findings suggest that, while alcohol may have promoted social cohesion and enhanced the power of the elites, it was likely just one factor among many that contributed to the development of complex societies.

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