When Do Mothers Need Others? (IMAGE)

University of Utah

When Do Mothers Need Others?

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Karen Kramer, an associate professor of anthropology, published a study in the Journal of Human Evolution titled, 'When Mothers Need Others: Life History Transitions Associated with the Evolution of Cooperative Breeding.' Her research examines how mothers underwent a remarkable transition from the past -- when they had one dependent offspring at a time, ended support of their young at weaning and received no help from others -- to the present, when mothers often have multiple kids who help rear other children. In this photo, a Pumé hunter-gatherer woman both cares for her young child and cooks a meal for her older children. Kramer has worked with the Pumé in Venezuela since 2005.

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Karen Kramer

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