摘要：The value of "diversity" in social and ecological systems is frequently asserted in academicand policy literature. Diversity is thought to enhance the resilience of social-ecological systems to variedand potentially uncertain future conditions. Yet there are trade-offs; diversity in ecological and socialdomains has costs as well as benefits. In this paper, we examine social diversity, specifically its costs andbenefits in terms of decision making in middle range or tribal societies, using archaeological evidencespanning seven centuries from four regions of the U.S. Southwest. In these nonstate societies, social diversitymay detract from the capacity for collective action. We ask whether as population density increases, makingcollective action increasingly difficult, social diversity declines. Further, we trace the cases of low diversityand high population density across our long-temporal sequences to see how they associate with the mostdramatic transformations. This latter analysis is inspired by the claim in resilience literature that reductionof diversity may contribute to reduction in resilience to varied conditions. Using archaeological data, weexamine social diversity and conformity through the material culture (pottery styles) of past societies. Ourresearch contributes to an enhanced understanding of how population density may limit social diversityand suggests the role that this association may play in some contexts of dramatic social transformation
关键词：archaeology; long-term; resilience; social diversity; vulnerability
