Instrumentality, Empiricism, and Rationality in Nuosu Divination

This article examines divination practices among the Nuosu people through the lenses of cultural evolution, cognition, and rationality. The authors argue that divination systems can exhibit empirical and instrumental features that make them meaningful and adaptive within specific cultural contexts. By analyzing how practitioners evaluate outcomes and refine practices over time, the study challenges simplistic distinctions between “rational” and “irrational” belief systems and contributes to broader debates in anthropology and cognitive science.