%0 Journal Article
%A Smith, Kristopher M.
%A Pisor, Anne C.
%A Aron, Bertha
%A Bernard, Kasambo
%A Fimbo, Paschal
%A Kimesera, Rose
%A Borgerhoff Mulder, Monique
%+ Department of Human Behavior Ecology and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Max Planck Society
Department of Human Behavior Ecology and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Max Planck Society
%T Friends near and afar, through thick and thin: Comparing contingency of help between close-distance and long-distance friends in Tanzanian fishing villages : 
%G eng
%U https://hdl.handle.net/21.11116/0000-000D-DD77-5
%R 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2022.09.004
%7 2022-09-22
%D 2023
%* Review method: peer-reviewed
%X Humans form and maintain friendships across long distances, which can provide access to non-local resources and support against large shocks that affect the entire local community. However, there may be a greater risk of defection in long-distance friendships, as monitoring for defection is more difficult at greater distances; accordingly, help between long-distance friends may be more explicitly contingent than between close-distance friends. We interviewed 918 participants from 21 fishing villages in Tanzania about whether they had received help in the form of a gift or loan from a friend living in their village and a friend living in a neighboring village. As there are local expectations that loans will be repaid but gifts will not, we predicted that close-distance friends would be more likely to help with gifts, whereas long-distance friends would be more likely to help with loans. Contrary to our predictions, gifts and loans between close- and long-distance friends were similar in kind and amount, though close-distance friends provided help more frequently, possibly because close-distance friends are more likely to meet frequently and belong to the same religious congregation. These results indicate that longdistance friendships are an important, and likely robust, strategy for managing risk and accessing more resources.
%K Friendship, Long-distance relationships, Mobility, Reciprocity, Cooperation, Risk management
%J Evolution and Human Behavior
%V 44
%N 5
%& 454
%P 454 - 465
%@ 10905138