Gerhard Lenski's Ecological-Evolutionary Theory

Summary

Via DeepSeek:

Lenski argues that societies evolve primarily through the interplay of technology (the means of harnessing energy and information) and economics (the means of distributing resources and surplus). This co-evolution drives changes in social structure, culture, politics, and even human psychology. It's a materialist, evolutionary paradigm that focuses on systemic change over centuries and millennia.

Gerhard Lenski's seminal work is "Power and Privilege: A Theory of Social Stratification" (1966) and its sequel "Ecological-Evolutionary Theory: Principles and Applications" (2005).

Core Concept: Societies are information-processing systems. The technological base (subsistence technology: hunting/gathering, horticulture, agrarianism, industry) determines the economic surplus available.

This surplus, in turn, shapes:

• Social stratification (who gets the surplus?).

• Population size and complexity.

• The nature of power and ideology.

The Framework's Logic: A Simplified Flow

=> Technology → Economic Productivity & Surplus → Social Reorganization → Cultural/Political Adaptation

Example: The Agrarian Revolution (plow, irrigation, animal traction) led to massive, storable food surplus.

This allowed for:

1. Economics: Specialization (artisans, soldiers, priests), trade, taxation, money.
2. Social Structure: Large, settled populations; rigid class hierarchies (landowners vs. peasants); empires.
3. Politics: Centralized states, bureaucracies, standing armies.
4. Culture: Organized religions, written records, monumental architecture.

Discussion

Extensions of Lenski's work

Lenski's framework is the bedrock for more contemporary theories of "Big History" and long-term progress.

• Ian Morris:

His book "Why the West Rules—For Now" operationalizes Lenski's ideas. He creates a quantitative "Social Development Index" based on energy capture, urbanization, information processing, and war-making capacity to compare East and West over 15,000 years.

Key Link: Ian Morris's website for summaries and talks.

• Jack Goldstone:

His theory of "efflorescences" and analyses of the Industrial Revolution fit squarely within techno-economic evolution.

• Joseph Tainter:

"The Collapse of Complex Societies" adds a crucial dimension: diminishing returns on complexity. As societies solve problems with more complex (and costly) techno-economic solutions, they can become vulnerable to collapse.

• Joel Mokyr:

His work on "The Lever of Riches" and the "Culture of Growth" delves into why certain societies develop and adopt transformative technologies (the "Industrial Enlightenment").

• The "Energy Return on Investment" (EROI) School:

This directly links energy capture (a core techno-economic variable) to civilizational trajectory. Thinkers like Thomas Homer-Dixon, and Charles Hall (who formalized EROI) are essential."

More information

Book

* Book: Ecological-Evolutionary Theory: Principles and Applications. Gerhard Lenski, 2005.