Status in flux: Unequal alliances can create power vacuums
John Bryden, Eric Silverman, Simon T. Powers

TL;DR
This paper models how simple interaction rules and alliance inequalities can lead to dynamic leadership structures and power vacuums, explaining transitions from egalitarian groups to hierarchical societies.
Contribution
It introduces a dynamic network model showing how inequality in alliances causes leadership changes and power vacuums, linking social dynamics to technological and normative shifts.
Findings
Power vacuums emerge from alliance inequalities.
Leadership transitions can be modeled with dynamic networks.
Technological developments influence social hierarchy transitions.
Abstract
Human groups show a variety of leadership structures from no leader, to changing leaders, to a single long-term leader. When a leader is deposed, the presence of a power vacuum can mean they are often quickly replaced. We lack an explanation of how such phenomena can emerge from simple rules of interaction between individuals. Here, we model transitions between different phases of leadership structure. We find a novel class of group dynamical behaviour where there is a single leader who is quickly replaced when they lose status, demonstrating a power vacuum. The model uses a dynamic network of individuals who non-coercively form and break alliances with one-another, with a key parameter modelling inequality in these alliances. We argue the model can explain transitions in leadership structure in the Neolithic Era from relatively equal hunter-gatherer societies, to groups with chieftains…
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Taxonomy
TopicsEvolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation · Opinion Dynamics and Social Influence · Language and cultural evolution
