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Hierarchical relationship? Only development will tell

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 November 2025

Pablo José Varas Enríquez Open the ORCID record for Pablo José Varas Enríquez [Opens in a new window]  and
Monique Borgerhoff Mulder Open the ORCID record for Monique Borgerhoff Mulder [Opens in a new window]
Pablo José Varas Enríquez*
Affiliation:
Department of Human Behaviour, Ecology, and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany BirthRites Lise Meitner Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, Toulouse School of Economics, Toulouse, France pablo.varas-enriquez@tse-fr.eu
Monique Borgerhoff Mulder
Affiliation:
Department of Human Behaviour, Ecology, and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany Department of Anthropology, University of California at Davis, Davis, USA mborgerhoffmulder@gmail.com Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, USA
*
*Corresponding author.
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Abstract

The number and timing of births are strongly associated with the stability of available resources and the risk of extrinsic mortality. The authors suggest a verbal model to disentangle the relationship between these two variables. However, we challenge their assumption of a hierarchical relationship between these two predictors and propose that formal modelling of their interaction, within a developmental perspective, could further our understanding of how the reproductive strategies of women respond to environmental uncertainty.

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Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 48 , 2025 , e107
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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