1. Origin and Evolution of Cultural Level Organization
AILUN – Lecture 6
Adapted from Glenn, S. S. (2004). Individual Behavior, culture, and social change. The Behavior Analyst, 27,

2. Culture
Defined: Patterns of learned behavior transmitted socially, as well as products of that behavior (objects, technologies, institutions)
Prerequisites: social species, uncommitted behavior, susceptibility to operant processes
Level of analysis: supraorganismic – involves interlocking behavioral contingencies of multiple organisms
No new behavioral processes -- each organism’s operant behavior still analyzed in terms of behavioral principles operating at the level of the individual organism
Reasons for similarities in content of human operants
similarities in non-social or social environments result in independently produced similarities of operants in different repertoires (no cultural transmission)
social environmental events incidentally contribute to similarity
similarity systematically programmed via contrived socially mediated contingencies

3. Cultural Practices
Defined: similar patterns of behavioral content, usually maintained by similar environmental content
Examples
Twiggy hair style
Driving stick-shift automobiles
Presenting professional papers
Point of transmission may be a single link between behavior of transmittor and transmittee
Hair stylist A may create style pictured in a magazine (or in person) and other hair stylists produce a similar result, which may be repeated many times
Hair stylist A demonstrates styling hair and stylist B imitates A’s activities, producing a similar result (B repeats many times with many patrons)

4. Cumulative Effect of Cultural Practices
Examples
Smoking – contributes to illnesses, increases public health cost
Dumping waste in waterways – kills wildlife, causes illness
Running air conditioners – affects ozone layer, increases incidence of skin cancer
Driving cars – depletes fossil fuel reserves, drives up cost of gasoline

5. Macrocontingencies1
Defined: Patterns of similar behavior (cultural practice) and their cumulative effects
Example
P1 drive to work 1 ltr gasoline
P2 drive to work .5 ltr gasoline Cumulative effect
P3 drive to work .3 ltr gasoline ltr/1 day/1 way
P4 drive to work .2 ltr gasoline ltr annually
No need for cultural level selection to explain the behavior or the cumulative effect: behavioral principles are sufficient

6. Engineering Change in Macrocontingencies
Arrange environment to bring about change in behavior of many individuals
Implement reinforcement contingencies for car pooling (HOV lanes)
Implement punishment contingencies for consumption (higher price)
Social approval of conservation gradually becomes common
P1 – drives to work,taking P2, P3, P4
P2 – rides with P gal 1way/1day
P3 – rides with P gal annually
P4 – rides with P1

7. Recurring Interlocking Behavioral Contingencies
In repetitions of a particular situation, Person A’s behavior repeatedly constitutes the environmental events participating in Person’s B’s operant contingencies and vice versa
Example: Marta and Todd regularly cook meals together
The repeating pattern of interlocking behavior for each twosome is maintained by the outcome of interlocking behavioral contingencies for that twosome
Each twosome’s interlocking behavioral contingencies constitutes a cultural lineage
Each time the pattern is instantiated it produces an outcome
The outcomes (meals) may serve as back-up reinforcers for all the behaviors of each actor and it may also serve to maintain the pattern of interlocking contingencies
This repeating pattern is a cultural practice if different actors independently participate in a similar repeating pattern of interlocking behavioral contingencies (Jim and Sam also regularly cook meals together, as do Jordan and Linda and many other twosomes)

8. Selection in the Evolution of Cultural Organization
Level of analysis: interrelated behavior of two or more organisms
Schematic representation of cultural level contingencies of selection (metacontingencies)
Organisms O, O’, O’’
Situation S Environment
IBC1 IBC2 IBC1 IBC3 IBC1 IBC1 IBC4 IBC5 IBC1 Iterations
C C C C C1 Environment
Interlocking Behavioral Contingencies 1
All IBC1 recurrences constitute a particular cultural lineage

9. Metacontingencies
Defined: Temporal relations between recurring interlocking behavioral contingencies and their consequent environment that account for frequency, form, or other properties of the lineage of recurring interlocking behavioral contingencies
Example: Relation between Tom and Marta’s pattern of interlocking behavior and the resulting meals accounts for adjustments in the pattern
Operant contingencies are embedded in the cultural entities that participate in metacontingencies
Interlocking behavioral contingencies may be hierarchically nested as cultural organization becomes more complex

10. Engineering Change in Metacontingencies
Identify the interlocking behavioral contingencies that produce an aggregate outcome
Change the metacontingency so that alternative interlocking behavioral contingencies are selected
Change the behavioral contingencies embedded in the interlocking behavioral contingencies to produce a change in aggregate outcome

11. Schematic of Cultural Level Intervention
Problem: High frequency of pedestrian casualties in Brasilia
Cross wide streets with fast traffic, not in crosswoaks
Drivers not yielding to pedestrians
Problem is cultural antecedent for IBC formation
Participants in IBCs repeatedly produce an aggregate product: activity designed to change behavioral contingencies for drivers
The aggregate product leads to a change in operant contingencies for drivers and pedestrians
The change in operant contingencies results in lower frequency of pedestrian casualties
Lower frequency of pedestrian casualties functions as cultural consequence maintaining IBCs

12. Macrocontingency Metacontingency Macrocontingency Similar driver
Operants &
pedestrian O’s
Cumulative
cultural
product
Cultural consequence
(Maintains IBCs)
Aggregate
Product
Interlocking
behavioral
contingencies
CP1 A
CP3 Z
CP4 Y
Smaller number of
traffic injuries
(running over)
Large number
of pedestrian
injuries
CP2 W
Macrocontingency
Church and product
Media and product
Police and product
Brasília University and product
Metacontingency
Traffic Dep. and product
Macrocontingency
CP1- Not respecting crosswalk (drivers) CP3- Respecting crosswalk (drivers) (drivers)
CP2- Crossing outside of the crosswalk (pedestrians) CP4- Crossing inside of the crosswalk (pedestrians)

13. Next: Experimental Analysis of Cultural Selection