P Spikins
Biographic Data
| ID | 27410 |
|---|---|
| NAME | P Spikins |
| GIVEN NAMES | P |
| FAMILY NAME | Spikins |
| SIGNATURE | SPIKINS P |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of York |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-9174-5168 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 25 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 115 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 25 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1997 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Social and emotional cognition in Pleistocene hominin evolution: The role of biocultural processes
Burials and engravings in a small-brained hominin, Homo naledi, from the late Pleistocene: Contexts and evolutionary implications
Data from recent explorations in the Dinaledi subsystem illustrates one of the earliest examples of a mortuary practice in hominins and offers the earliest evidence of multiple interments and funerary actions, as well as evidence of the early creation of meaning making by a hominin. The hominin undertaking these behaviors was the small-brained Homo naledi. These data call into question several key assumptions about behavioral and cognitive evolut…
Evidence for deliberate burial of the dead by Homo naledi
Recent excavations in the Rising Star Cave System of South Africa have revealed burials of the extinct hominin species Homo naledi. A combination of geological and anatomical evidence shows that hominins dug holes that disrupted the subsurface stratigraphy and interred the remains of H. naledi individuals, resulting in at least two discrete features within the Dinaledi Chamber and the Hill Antechamber. These are the most ancient interments yet re…
Epilogue on the Roots of Gratitude
Epilogue on the Roots of Gratitude
Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Ecological Changes, Social Behaviour and Human Intergroup Tolerance 300,000 to 30,000 BP
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10816-020-09503-5
Autism and engagement with material culture
Autism spectrum conditions are widely characterized as a cognitive difference which affects social understanding and behaviour. However, evidence increasingly suggests that the condition also affects engagement with material aspects of the environment. Here we review research into how autism affects engagement with the material world. We argue that, whilst there are important distinctions, autism affects perception of the social and material worl…
Autism Spectrum Condition and the Built Environment: New Perspectives on Place Attachment and Cultural Heritage
Values have long provided essential foundation for cultural heritage policy and practice. Traditionally these values were determined by heritage experts and employed by agencies responsible for managing and protecting heritage for society and the future. Such values tended to focus on authorised and normative views of the past. More recently, heritage values have been applied with greater flexibility but to be effective this more flexible approac…
Not just a virtue: The evolution of self-control
We rely constantly on self-control in every aspect of our lives. Although it is not an ability unique to humans, our elevated levels of self-control may have played a key role in our evolution. Self-control is likely to have been key to many of the traits such as prosociality, that define modern humans. Despite this, attempts to study the evolution of self control through characteristics of the archaeological record have been few. Studies of rela…
The object of my affection: Attachment security and material culture
Archaeological research into how objects affect us emotionally is still in its infancy, with our affiliative responses to objects – those related to socially close and harmonious relationships – being particularly understudied. Psychological research has however revealed that objects can have powerful effects on emotional wellbeing, acting as attachment figures which provide a sense of comfort and security in the absence of loved ones, and promot…
How Do We Explain ‛Autistic Traits’ in European Upper Palaeolithic Art
Traits in Upper Palaeolithic art which are also seen in the work of talented artists with autism, including most obviously an exceptional realism, remain to be explained. However any association between the famously evocative animal depictions created in the European Upper Palaeolithic and what is commonly seen as a ‘disorder’ has always been contentious. Debate over these similarities has been heated, with explanations ranging from famous works …
Calculated or caring? Neanderthal healthcare in social context
Explanations for patterns of healed trauma in Neanderthals have been a matter of debate for several decades. Despite widespread evidence for recovery from injuries or survival despite impairments, apparent evidence for healthcare is given limited attention. Moreover, interpretations of Neanderthals' approach to injury and suffering sometimes assume a calculated or indifferent attitude to others. Here the authors review evidence for Neanderthal he…
Are there alternative adaptive strategies to human pro-sociality? The role of collaborative morality in the emergence of personality variation and autistic traits
Selection pressures to better understand others' thoughts and feelings are seen as a primary driving force in human cognitive evolution. Yet might the evolution of social cognition be more complex than we assume, with more than one strategy towards social understanding and developing a positive pro-social reputation? Here we argue that social buffering of vulnerabilities through the emergence of collaborative morality will have opened new niches …
Hunter-gatherer situations: Response by Penny Spikins to Thomas Widlok’s keynote speech (CHAGS XI)
The Geography of Trust and Betrayal: Moral disputes and Late Pleistocene dispersal
The explanations for a rapid dispersal of modern humans after 100,000 BP remain enigmatic. Populations of modern humans took new routes – crossing significant topographic and environmental barriers, including making major sea crossings, and moving into and through risky and difficult environments. Neither population increase nor ecological changes provide an adequate explanation for a pattern of rapid movement, including leaping into new regions …
The Cradle of Thought: Growth, Learning, Play and Attachment in Neanderthal Children
Childhood is a core stage in development, essential in the acquisition of social, practical and cultural skills. However, this area receives limited attention in archaeological debate, especially in early prehistory. We here consider N eanderthal childhood, exploring the experience of N eanderthal children using biological, cultural and social evidence. We conclude that N eanderthal childhood experience was subtly different from that of their mod…
Goodwill hunting? Debates over the 'meaning' of Lower Palaeolithic handaxe form revisited
There has been intense debate over the ‘meaning’ of Lower Palaeolithic handaxe form for more than a decade. Handaxes date from around 1.7 million years onwards, and many show attention to elements of form such as symmetry and a conformity to the ‘golden ratio’ which go beyond immediate function. Our challenge in interpreting such patterning is that we cannot assume a ‘modern’ cognition to the makers of Acheulian handaxes nor capacities to negotia…
From Homininity to Humanity: Compassion from the Earliest Archaics to Modern Humans
We are increasingly aware of the role of emotions and emotional construction in social relationships. However, despite their significance, there are few constructs or theoretical approaches to the evolution of emotions that can be related to the prehistoric archaeological record. Whilst we frequently discuss how archaic humans might have thought, how they felt might seem to be beyond the realm of academic inquiry. In this paper we aim to open up …
Durable Residues: Addressing the use of microwear, a case study from March Hill
Different cultural and research traditions have led to distinctively different approaches to lithics analysis. An integration of different approaches can often give new 'ways of seeing' artefact assemblages and distribution patterns and provide valuable insights into past activities. Here we present the preliminary results of a project integrating detailed analytical techniques, focused on processes of production and consumption and social dynami…
Autism, the Integrations of ‘Difference’ and the Origins of Modern Human Behaviour
It is proposed here that the archaeological evidence for the emergence of ‘modern behaviour’ (160,000–40,000 bp) can best be explained as the rise of cognitive variation within populations through social mechanisms for integrating ‘different minds’, rather than by the development of a single ‘modern human mind’. Autism and the autistic spectrum within human populations are used as an example of ‘different minds’ which when integrated within socie…
The Bashful and the Boastful: Prestigious Leaders and Social Change in Mesolithic Societies
Mesolithic on the move. Papers presented at the Sixth International Conference on the Mesolithic in Europe, Stockholm 2000
GIS Based Interpolation Applied to Distinguishing Occupation Phases of Early Prehistoric Sites
GIS Models of Past Vegetation: An Example from Northern England, 10,000–5000BP
Mesolithic Northern England: Environment, population and settlement
Focusing on evidence from northern England, this book addresses the idea of gradual population increase and related concepts of Mesolithic settlements. Critically assessed are both the nature of the archaeological and environmental evidence for Mesolithic adaptations. A possible different approach is suggested, which acknowledges the importance of ecological changes in a large scale model of changing vegetation, but attempting to avoid static and…
Stability or change? Global perspectives from the end of the Ice Age
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Goodwill hunting? Debates over the 'meaning' of Lower Palaeolithic handaxe form revisited
There has been intense debate over the ‘meaning’ of Lower Palaeolithic handaxe form for more than a decade. Handaxes date from around 1.7 million years onwards, and many show attention to elements of form such as symmetry and a conformity to the ‘golden ratio’ which go beyond immediate function. Our challenge in interpreting such patterning is that we cannot assume a ‘modern’ cognition to the makers of Acheulian handaxes nor capacities to negotia…
The Cradle of Thought: Growth, Learning, Play and Attachment in Neanderthal Children
Childhood is a core stage in development, essential in the acquisition of social, practical and cultural skills. However, this area receives limited attention in archaeological debate, especially in early prehistory. We here consider N eanderthal childhood, exploring the experience of N eanderthal children using biological, cultural and social evidence. We conclude that N eanderthal childhood experience was subtly different from that of their mod…
GIS Models of Past Vegetation: An Example from Northern England, 10,000–5000BP
Calculated or caring? Neanderthal healthcare in social context
Explanations for patterns of healed trauma in Neanderthals have been a matter of debate for several decades. Despite widespread evidence for recovery from injuries or survival despite impairments, apparent evidence for healthcare is given limited attention. Moreover, interpretations of Neanderthals' approach to injury and suffering sometimes assume a calculated or indifferent attitude to others. Here the authors review evidence for Neanderthal he…
GIS Based Interpolation Applied to Distinguishing Occupation Phases of Early Prehistoric Sites
The Bashful and the Boastful: Prestigious Leaders and Social Change in Mesolithic Societies
Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Ecological Changes, Social Behaviour and Human Intergroup Tolerance 300,000 to 30,000 BP
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10816-020-09503-5
Evidence for deliberate burial of the dead by Homo naledi
Recent excavations in the Rising Star Cave System of South Africa have revealed burials of the extinct hominin species Homo naledi. A combination of geological and anatomical evidence shows that hominins dug holes that disrupted the subsurface stratigraphy and interred the remains of H. naledi individuals, resulting in at least two discrete features within the Dinaledi Chamber and the Hill Antechamber. These are the most ancient interments yet re…
Autism, the Integrations of ‘Difference’ and the Origins of Modern Human Behaviour
It is proposed here that the archaeological evidence for the emergence of ‘modern behaviour’ (160,000–40,000 bp) can best be explained as the rise of cognitive variation within populations through social mechanisms for integrating ‘different minds’, rather than by the development of a single ‘modern human mind’. Autism and the autistic spectrum within human populations are used as an example of ‘different minds’ which when integrated within socie…
Burials and engravings in a small-brained hominin, Homo naledi, from the late Pleistocene: Contexts and evolutionary implications
Data from recent explorations in the Dinaledi subsystem illustrates one of the earliest examples of a mortuary practice in hominins and offers the earliest evidence of multiple interments and funerary actions, as well as evidence of the early creation of meaning making by a hominin. The hominin undertaking these behaviors was the small-brained Homo naledi. These data call into question several key assumptions about behavioral and cognitive evolut…
The Geography of Trust and Betrayal: Moral disputes and Late Pleistocene dispersal
The explanations for a rapid dispersal of modern humans after 100,000 BP remain enigmatic. Populations of modern humans took new routes – crossing significant topographic and environmental barriers, including making major sea crossings, and moving into and through risky and difficult environments. Neither population increase nor ecological changes provide an adequate explanation for a pattern of rapid movement, including leaping into new regions …
Are there alternative adaptive strategies to human pro-sociality? The role of collaborative morality in the emergence of personality variation and autistic traits
Selection pressures to better understand others' thoughts and feelings are seen as a primary driving force in human cognitive evolution. Yet might the evolution of social cognition be more complex than we assume, with more than one strategy towards social understanding and developing a positive pro-social reputation? Here we argue that social buffering of vulnerabilities through the emergence of collaborative morality will have opened new niches …
Durable Residues: Addressing the use of microwear, a case study from March Hill
Different cultural and research traditions have led to distinctively different approaches to lithics analysis. An integration of different approaches can often give new 'ways of seeing' artefact assemblages and distribution patterns and provide valuable insights into past activities. Here we present the preliminary results of a project integrating detailed analytical techniques, focused on processes of production and consumption and social dynami…
Stability or change? Global perspectives from the end of the Ice Age
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Mesolithic Northern England: Environment, population and settlement
Focusing on evidence from northern England, this book addresses the idea of gradual population increase and related concepts of Mesolithic settlements. Critically assessed are both the nature of the archaeological and environmental evidence for Mesolithic adaptations. A possible different approach is suggested, which acknowledges the importance of ecological changes in a large scale model of changing vegetation, but attempting to avoid static and…
GIS Models of Past Vegetation: An Example from Northern England, 10,000–5000BP
GIS Based Interpolation Applied to Distinguishing Occupation Phases of Early Prehistoric Sites
Mesolithic on the move. Papers presented at the Sixth International Conference on the Mesolithic in Europe, Stockholm 2000
The Bashful and the Boastful: Prestigious Leaders and Social Change in Mesolithic Societies
Durable Residues: Addressing the use of microwear, a case study from March Hill
Different cultural and research traditions have led to distinctively different approaches to lithics analysis. An integration of different approaches can often give new 'ways of seeing' artefact assemblages and distribution patterns and provide valuable insights into past activities. Here we present the preliminary results of a project integrating detailed analytical techniques, focused on processes of production and consumption and social dynami…
Autism, the Integrations of ‘Difference’ and the Origins of Modern Human Behaviour
It is proposed here that the archaeological evidence for the emergence of ‘modern behaviour’ (160,000–40,000 bp) can best be explained as the rise of cognitive variation within populations through social mechanisms for integrating ‘different minds’, rather than by the development of a single ‘modern human mind’. Autism and the autistic spectrum within human populations are used as an example of ‘different minds’ which when integrated within socie…
From Homininity to Humanity: Compassion from the Earliest Archaics to Modern Humans
We are increasingly aware of the role of emotions and emotional construction in social relationships. However, despite their significance, there are few constructs or theoretical approaches to the evolution of emotions that can be related to the prehistoric archaeological record. Whilst we frequently discuss how archaic humans might have thought, how they felt might seem to be beyond the realm of academic inquiry. In this paper we aim to open up …
Goodwill hunting? Debates over the 'meaning' of Lower Palaeolithic handaxe form revisited
There has been intense debate over the ‘meaning’ of Lower Palaeolithic handaxe form for more than a decade. Handaxes date from around 1.7 million years onwards, and many show attention to elements of form such as symmetry and a conformity to the ‘golden ratio’ which go beyond immediate function. Our challenge in interpreting such patterning is that we cannot assume a ‘modern’ cognition to the makers of Acheulian handaxes nor capacities to negotia…
The Cradle of Thought: Growth, Learning, Play and Attachment in Neanderthal Children
Childhood is a core stage in development, essential in the acquisition of social, practical and cultural skills. However, this area receives limited attention in archaeological debate, especially in early prehistory. We here consider N eanderthal childhood, exploring the experience of N eanderthal children using biological, cultural and social evidence. We conclude that N eanderthal childhood experience was subtly different from that of their mod…
The Geography of Trust and Betrayal: Moral disputes and Late Pleistocene dispersal
The explanations for a rapid dispersal of modern humans after 100,000 BP remain enigmatic. Populations of modern humans took new routes – crossing significant topographic and environmental barriers, including making major sea crossings, and moving into and through risky and difficult environments. Neither population increase nor ecological changes provide an adequate explanation for a pattern of rapid movement, including leaping into new regions …
Are there alternative adaptive strategies to human pro-sociality? The role of collaborative morality in the emergence of personality variation and autistic traits
Selection pressures to better understand others' thoughts and feelings are seen as a primary driving force in human cognitive evolution. Yet might the evolution of social cognition be more complex than we assume, with more than one strategy towards social understanding and developing a positive pro-social reputation? Here we argue that social buffering of vulnerabilities through the emergence of collaborative morality will have opened new niches …
Hunter-gatherer situations: Response by Penny Spikins to Thomas Widlok’s keynote speech (CHAGS XI)
The object of my affection: Attachment security and material culture
Archaeological research into how objects affect us emotionally is still in its infancy, with our affiliative responses to objects – those related to socially close and harmonious relationships – being particularly understudied. Psychological research has however revealed that objects can have powerful effects on emotional wellbeing, acting as attachment figures which provide a sense of comfort and security in the absence of loved ones, and promot…
How Do We Explain ‛Autistic Traits’ in European Upper Palaeolithic Art
Traits in Upper Palaeolithic art which are also seen in the work of talented artists with autism, including most obviously an exceptional realism, remain to be explained. However any association between the famously evocative animal depictions created in the European Upper Palaeolithic and what is commonly seen as a ‘disorder’ has always been contentious. Debate over these similarities has been heated, with explanations ranging from famous works …
Calculated or caring? Neanderthal healthcare in social context
Explanations for patterns of healed trauma in Neanderthals have been a matter of debate for several decades. Despite widespread evidence for recovery from injuries or survival despite impairments, apparent evidence for healthcare is given limited attention. Moreover, interpretations of Neanderthals' approach to injury and suffering sometimes assume a calculated or indifferent attitude to others. Here the authors review evidence for Neanderthal he…
Autism Spectrum Condition and the Built Environment: New Perspectives on Place Attachment and Cultural Heritage
Values have long provided essential foundation for cultural heritage policy and practice. Traditionally these values were determined by heritage experts and employed by agencies responsible for managing and protecting heritage for society and the future. Such values tended to focus on authorised and normative views of the past. More recently, heritage values have been applied with greater flexibility but to be effective this more flexible approac…
Not just a virtue: The evolution of self-control
We rely constantly on self-control in every aspect of our lives. Although it is not an ability unique to humans, our elevated levels of self-control may have played a key role in our evolution. Self-control is likely to have been key to many of the traits such as prosociality, that define modern humans. Despite this, attempts to study the evolution of self control through characteristics of the archaeological record have been few. Studies of rela…
Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Ecological Changes, Social Behaviour and Human Intergroup Tolerance 300,000 to 30,000 BP
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10816-020-09503-5
Autism and engagement with material culture
Autism spectrum conditions are widely characterized as a cognitive difference which affects social understanding and behaviour. However, evidence increasingly suggests that the condition also affects engagement with material aspects of the environment. Here we review research into how autism affects engagement with the material world. We argue that, whilst there are important distinctions, autism affects perception of the social and material worl…
Epilogue on the Roots of Gratitude
Epilogue on the Roots of Gratitude
Burials and engravings in a small-brained hominin, Homo naledi, from the late Pleistocene: Contexts and evolutionary implications
Data from recent explorations in the Dinaledi subsystem illustrates one of the earliest examples of a mortuary practice in hominins and offers the earliest evidence of multiple interments and funerary actions, as well as evidence of the early creation of meaning making by a hominin. The hominin undertaking these behaviors was the small-brained Homo naledi. These data call into question several key assumptions about behavioral and cognitive evolut…
Evidence for deliberate burial of the dead by Homo naledi
Recent excavations in the Rising Star Cave System of South Africa have revealed burials of the extinct hominin species Homo naledi. A combination of geological and anatomical evidence shows that hominins dug holes that disrupted the subsurface stratigraphy and interred the remains of H. naledi individuals, resulting in at least two discrete features within the Dinaledi Chamber and the Hill Antechamber. These are the most ancient interments yet re…
Social and emotional cognition in Pleistocene hominin evolution: The role of biocultural processes
Archaeology (14 works) · Psychology (12 works) · Sociology (12 works) · History (11 works) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (11 works) · Geography (10 works) · Cognition (7 works) · Computer Science (7 works) · History (6 works) · Social Psychology (6 works)