Why did Leslie White use energy consumption as a measure of cultural development?

Leslie White, a prominent figure in neoevolutionism, utilized energy consumption as a primary metric for cultural development because he believed that technological progress directly dictates the capacity of a society to harness energy from its environment.12

White posited that cultural evolution is driven by technological changes that increase the amount of energy harnessed per capita. From his perspective, as societies become more efficient at capturing and utilizing energy, they undergo "cultural advance," which is characterized by greater complexity in social organization. By measuring the total energy harnessed and the efficiency of its application, White sought to establish a scientific, materialist gauge for the progress of human culture.13

This approach allowed White to argue for a coherent history of human development, suggesting that societies with higher energy consumption were more advanced in their ability to dominate and adapt to their environments.23