Data from: Social network architecture and the tempo of cumulative cultural evolution

The ability to build upon previous knowledge—cumulative cultural
evolution—is a hallmark of human societies. While cumulative cultural
evolution depends on the interaction between social systems, cognition and
the environment, there is increasing evidence that cumulative cultural
evolution is facilitated by larger and more structured societies. However,
such effects may be interlinked with patterns of social wiring, thus the
relative importance of social network architecture as an additional factor
shaping cumulative cultural evolution remains unclear. By simulating
innovation and diffusion of cultural traits in populations with
stereotyped social structures, we disentangle the relative contributions
of network architecture from those of population size and connectivity. We
demonstrate that while more structured networks, such as those found in
multilevel societies, can promote the recombination of cultural traits
into high-value products, they also hinder spread and make products more
likely to go extinct. We find that transmission mechanisms are therefore
critical in determining the outcomes of cumulative cultural evolution. Our
results highlight the complex interaction between population size,
structure and transmission mechanisms, with important implications for
future research.