We examine the relationship between niche construction theory (NCT) and human behavioral ecology (HBE), two branches of evolutionary science that are important sources of theory in archeology. We distinguish between formal models of niche construction as an evolutionary process, and uses of niche construction to refer to a kind of human behavior. Formal models from NCT examine how environmental modification can change the selection pressures that organisms face. In contrast, formal models from HBE predict behavior assuming people behave adaptively in their local setting, and can be used to predict when and why people engage in niche construction. We emphasize that HBE as a field is much broader than foraging theory and can incorporate social and cultural influences on decision‐making. We demonstrate how these approaches can be formally incorporated in a multi‐inheritance framework for evolutionary research, and argue that archeologists can best contribute to evolutionary theory by building and testing models that flexibly incorporate HBE and NCT elements.

中文翻译：

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人类行为生态学与生态位建设

我们研究了利基构建理论（NCT）和人类行为生态学（HBE）之间的关系，后者是进化科学的两个分支，是考古学理论的重要来源。我们将利基构建的形​​式化模型作为一种进化过程加以区分，并使用利基构建来指代一​​种人类行为。NCT的正式模型研究了环境改造如何改变生物体面临的选择压力。相比之下，来自HBE的正式模型会假设人们在当地环境中具有自适应行为，从而预测行为，并且可以用来预测人们何时以及为何参与利基建设。我们强调，HBE作为一个领域比觅食理论要广泛得多，并且可以将社会和文化影响因素纳入决策制定。