I think the fact that we can organize billion souls under the flag of a nation state speaks volumes enough. Did neanderthals have this capacity? I don't know.

I think the fact that we can organize billion souls under the flag of a nation state speaks volumes enough. Did neanderthals have this capacity? I don't know. But if their psychology did not facilitate large scale collaboration, a violent human tribe killing a bunch of them now and again would explain some part why they disappeared. I'm not saying a human tribe hunted them - just that a violent human tribe would attack all hominids around them. And if the Neanderthals did not have this capacity for mass violence, in time these conflicts would dwindle their numbers.