A mode of subsistence describes how people interact with their environments to make a living. It helps explain not only how a society obtains the necessities of life, but also how people organize work, exchange resources, and develop shared values.
A mode of subsistence is the way people interact with their environment in order to make a living. Each mode includes strategies for producing, exchanging, and consuming the goods and resources people need.
All flashcards
What is a mode of subsistence?
It is the way people interact with their environments to make a living, including how they produce, exchange, and consume needed resources.
What are the four main modes of subsistence?
Gathering-hunting, pastoralism, plant cultivation, and industrialism/post-industrialism.
What basic needs do modes of subsistence help meet?
They help people obtain necessities such as food, clothing, shelter, and health-related resources.
How do societies organize subsistence work?
They develop roles, groups, and institutions that divide or coordinate the labor needed to produce what people need.
What does it mean for a mode of subsistence to be predominant?
It is the main strategy through which a society makes a living, even if the society also uses strategies from other modes.
Quiz questions
Which set names basic needs that subsistence activities help people meet?Answer: Food, clothing, shelter, and health.
How do labor and technology contribute to subsistence?Answer: They help people obtain resources and process them for use.
How can roles, groups, and institutions support subsistence?Answer: They can divide or coordinate the work needed to produce goods.
How may goods and resources circulate within a mode of subsistence?Answer: They may be exchanged within local groups and beyond them.
What can economic practices express as well as organize?Answer: A society's ideals and values.
Based on Introduction to Anthropology by Jennifer Hasty, David G. Lewis, Marjorie M. Snipes (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.