
The Collapse of Complex Societies
Joseph Tainter(Author)
Cambridge University Press
Published on 29. March 1990
Book
Paperback/Softback
262 pages
978-0-521-38673-9 (ISBN)
Description
Any explanation of political collapse carries lessons not just for the study of ancient societies, but for the members of all complex societies in both the present and future. Dr Tainter describes nearly two dozen cases of collapse and reviews more than 2000 years of explanations. He then develops a new and far-reaching theory that accounts for collapse among diverse kinds of societies, evaluating his model and clarifying the processes of disintegration by detailed studies of the Roman, Mayan and Chacoan collapses.
Reviews / Votes
'Tainter's model accommodates all levels of complexity and all kinds of evidence. It deserves to be widely read.' Antiquity 'Tainter's is an attractive and compelling thesis, of a genre which is nearly extinct among domestic historians.' History TodayMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
1 Halftones, unspecified; 30 Line drawings, unspecified
Dimensions
Height: 244 mm
Width: 170 mm
Thickness: 15 mm
Weight
465 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-521-38673-9 (9780521386739)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Joseph Tainter
The Collapse of Complex Societies
Book
05/1988
Cambridge University Press
€43.33
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Previous edition

Joseph Tainter
The Collapse of Complex Societies
Book
05/1988
Cambridge University Press
€43.33
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Content
Acknowledgements; 1. Introduction to collapse; 2. The nature of complex societies; 3. The study of collapse; 4. Understanding collapse: the marginal productivity of sociopolitical change; 5. Evaluation: complexity and marginal returns in collapsing societies; 6. Summary and implications; References; Index.