The Rise and Fall of Complex Societies

Using historical and archaeological perspectives and data, the course examines the rise of complex state level societies and their undoing. The course focuses on the institutions that engender solidarity and bind large organized groups of people together within a cohesive socio-political structure. It then evaluates the forces that erode state level institutions and the thresholds of stress that lead to the collapse of the state or empire.

Watch the course on YouTube.