Risk of resource failure and toolkit variation in small-scale farmers and herders

PloS one • Vol/Iss. 7(7) • Public Library of Science • • Published In • Pages: ??•
By Collard, Mark, Ruttle, April, Buchanan, Briggs, O’Brien, Michael J.

Hypothesis

Diversity and complexity of toolkits used by farming and herding groups will be positively associated with risk of resource failure (2).

Note

Risk of resource failure measured by proxies latitude, elevation, average monthly rainfall, effective temperature, and crop-pest burden. No risk proxies had any significant correlation with diversity or complexity of toolkits used for farming, hunting, or storage in either multiple or linear regression analyses.

Test

Test NameSupportSignificanceCoefficientTail
Multiple regressionNot SupportedUNKNOWNUNKNOWNUNKNOWN

Variables

Variable NameVariable Type OCM Term(s)
Effective TemperatureIndependentClimate
LatitudeIndependentLocation
ElevationIndependentTopography And Geology
Toolkit ComplexityDependentGeneral Tools
Toolkit DiversityDependentGeneral Tools
Average Technounits Per ToolDependentGeneral Tools
Hunting ToolsDependentHunting And Trapping, General Tools
Farming ToolsDependentTillage, Agricultural Machinery, General Tools
Storage & Irrigation ToolsDependentTillage, Preservation And Storage Of Food, General Tools
Average Monthly RainfallIndependentClimate
Crop-Pest BurdenIndependentFauna, Tillage