Viewing the relationship from the perspective of foragers, one can take the
approach of Wiessner (1982), working among the San in the Kalahari, that foragers
are investing in the future when they engage in such relationships. It is a form of
risk distribution. By maintaining extrasocietal relationships, foragers build “safety
nets” that they can use at times of extreme stress, when internal coping strategies
fail and they must turn to their agricultural partners for help. I have not observed
this among the Batek—who have not been under conditions of extreme stress
when I have known them—but it is what the Penan Belangan of Sarawak, who
no longer have access to community forests following their resettlement for the
Bakun Dam—as well as Agta (Bion Griffin, personal communication), would do.