How Did Marshall Sahlins Use Possibilism to Challenge Ecological Studies?

💡 The Answer

• Marshall Sahlins applied possibilism in the field of cultural ecology.
• He used it to develop alternatives to the dominant environmental determinism.
• Environmental determinism then assumed the environment directly controls human culture.
• Sahlins argued that social factors, not just ecology, shape cultural practices.
• This shifted focus to human decision-making within environmental constraints.