Collaboration would have been critical in earlier times,
during the period of slave raiding (Endicott 1983) and later Malay expansion into
the interior (Endicott 1997), and there was a constant fear of being ambushed by
raiders or land thieves. People did not just run from threats but would have warned
related groups to keep their distance as well. At any rate, mobility is adaptive
in that it affords a certain readiness to alter directions and strategies, maintain
knowledge of large territories, and enhance awareness of uncertainty and change.
It also protects cultural autonomy by affording freedom from external control (see
below). Furthermore, because it so clearly marks the people out as different from
neighboring farmers, it is an identity symbol that enhances group identity formation
and long-term commitment to the way of life it affords (Benjamin 2002).