DISSERTATION RESEARCH: "Phenotypic Resolution of Parent-Offspring Conflict among the Karo of North Sumatra, Indonesia

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0003951Smith / KushnickTheorists in behavioral ecology assume that the genetic fitness of an individual can be changed by different strategies. This dissertation research project by a cultural anthropologist from the University of Washington will test hypotheses about parental investment theory with data on mother-child interactions from a rural society in Sumatra, Indonesia. The project will record data on interbirth intervals and breastfeeding behavior of two samples of mothers, one from a relatively well-off and one from a relatively less well off village, through an intensive interview with 200 mothers in each village. Data will also come from behavioral observations of infant behavior, breastfeeding and other interactions done through scan sampling. This data will allow the student to test predictions drawn from theory such as the hypothesis that poor maternal socioeconomic contexts will favor long interbirth intervals; that good maternal socioeconomic conditions will favor less demanding offspring and less attentive parents. The data from this project will allow extensive theory development through hypothesis testing, which should advance our understanding of human parenting behavior. In addition the project will advance our knowledge about this important region of the world and contribute to the training of a young social scientist.