Supernatural monitoring evolves to solve cooperation problems in large anonymous groups

Evidence

This association makes sense if we realize that as groups gain in size, anonymity invades interactions, which in turn threatens the stability of the group. Beyond kin selection, reciprocity, and other cultural sanctions suitable for small-scale living, additional mechanisms are needed to make anonymous strangers cooperate with one another. One powerful mechanism in cultural evolution is the idea of supernatural monitoring—that gods who know everything and care about human morality are watching and willing to punish. It therefore makes sense that Big Gods who double as supernatural monitors are more prevalent in groups who need them the most—large, socially complex, anonymous, but cooperative groups. — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 419

Categorization

• XREF: This is the precise mechanism the reader maps onto Rodrigues: his omniscient God is a supernatural monitor whose authority depends on perceived watching, so the fumi-e trampling attack works by destroying the perception that anyone omniscient is watching.
• DEFINE: Defines the ‘supernatural monitoring’/Big God causal mechanism that anchors the whole analytical reading.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 419