ABSTRACT
The unified theory is one way of schematically showing the interrelationships among several of the major findings concerning the causes of warfare. The following "unified theory of feuding and warfare" attempts to combine various empirical results and theoretical approaches into a comprehensive scheme. Specifically, it attempts to reconcile the structural and ecological approaches, two approaches that have sometimes been treated as rival alternatives. A recent study of South American aboriginal warfare attempts to do this for a single region. Differential shortages within a region may be the precipitating reason for a larger group to attack a smaller one. Shortages can arise in two ways. First, natural disasters can cause immediate shortages in some areas of a region. The second causal chain begins with a high level of military sophistication. A group with shortages will consider attacking other groups that did not suffer severe shortages.
