DEMAND SHARING - RECIPROCITY AND THE PRESSURE FOR GENEROSITY AMONG FORAGERS

Despite the prevalence of an ethic of generosity among foragers, much sharing is by demand rather than by unsolicited giving. Although a beh avioristic model of demand sharing can be seen as matching sociobiolog ical expectations, the emphasis here is on the social and symbolic sig nificance of the practice. It is argued that demand sharing involves t esting, assertive, and/or substantiating behavior and is important in the constitution of social relations in egalitarian societies.