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Hunter-Gatherer Foraging: Five Simple Models

by Robert L. Bettinger

This is a primer on foraging models relevant to the study of hunter-gatherers. It is intended for students new to the subject matter, especially those with little mathematical training, and similarly challenged ethnographers, ethnologists, and archaeologists who are familiar with the principles of foraging theory but have never mastered any of its individual models. There are more of them than one might think. The diet breadth model is the backbone of hunter-gatherer foraging research. c.130p (Eliot Werner Publications 2009)

ISBN-13: 978-0-9797731-3-6
ISBN-10: 0-9797731-3-X
Paperback. Price GB £19.95

Review Quotes

"...useful for graduate seminars to teach details of how foraging societies maximize returns in manipulating the variability in resources of their exploitation territories."

Andrew B. Smith
Journal of Human Evolution (Book Review Blog) (October 2010)

"This book is the first of its kind to provide a suite of tools applicable to many ethnographic and archaeological foraging problems. Anyone who considers themselves involved in human behavioral ecology should work through this book. It is certainly required for any student of the discipline, and as it finds its way into the classroom and onto the desks of practitioners, it is sure to become a classic."

Brian F. Codding, Stanford University
California Archaeology 2.2 (December 2010 )

"The volume is comparatively inexpensive for an academic book and anyone with a serious interest in hunter-gatherers, prehistoric subsistence, and resource provisioning will want to own a copy."

Mark E. Basgall, California State University
Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology (2012)

"...an excellent primer on a group of models that, though not new, played an important role in the development of hunter-gatherer and ecological studies in anthropology that should be understood by all students. The examples, sample problems, and touch of humor as the models are explained make the book ideal for use in the classroom with either advanced undergraduates, graduate students, or for anyone wishing for a quick reminder of the match behind the models."

Susan K. Harris
American Antiquity 76(1) (2011)

"...could be used well as an adjunct or ancillary text for a number of different courses in quantitative methods, hunter-gatherers, or foraging economy.....succeeds overall very well and very nicely in what it aims to do."

Robert Whallon, University of Michigan
Journal of Anthropological Research (2010, Volume 66)

"This book would make an excellent accompaniment to many anthropology and archaeology courses, both at high school and college levels. [...] There is a lot of well-written material crammed into this little book! I highly recommend it for anyone interested not only directly with hunter-gatherer research, but for anyone who wonders how-we-know what we think we know about ancient day-to-day life. "

Bob Wishoff
The Dirt Brothers (http://dirtbrothers.org/) (2010)

About the Author

Robert L. Bettinger has played a central role in the development of hunter-gatherer foraging theory. He is professor of anthropology at the University of California, Davis, and winner of the Society for American Archaeology’s 2007 Award for Excellence in Archaeological Analysis and the Society for California Archaeology’s 2007 Martin A. Baumhoff Special Achievement Award.

Prepublication Praise

“This volume presents exercises designed to convey foraging models in a hands-on manner. An excellent resource for upper-division undergraduate and graduate-level classes focused on topics ranging from analytical methods in anthropology/ archaeology to hunter-gatherers.” -Gary M. Feinman, The Field Museum

“Anyone who has tried to teach students the various models used in behavioral ecology will find this book a welcome relief. Written by an authority who understands both theory and application, the book’s examples and exercises show the models’ potentials and limitations. As a step-by-step guide, it is an indispensable supplement to a variety of classes.”
-Robert L. Kelly, University of Wyoming

“A compact, consistently informative, and exemplary primer for beginners and experts alike. Bettinger’s inviting and lucid style, multiple examples, and transparent math will make this short book an instant classic, the well-worn companion of anyone interested in prehistoric subsistence and lifeways.” -Bruce Winterhalder, University of California, Davis


An excerpt from this book is available

Preface & Table of Contents (47.9kb)

All excerpts are published in PDF format.
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