Most missionaries were under the impression that Africans (as well as people in Asia, the Middle East, and undeveloped countries) were uncivilized pagans in need of someone to save them. Missionaries felt that if they could bring the word of God to these people, as well as modernize their villages and educate them, they would be able to civilize them. This calls into question the ideas of Social Darwinism and Imperialism.
modernize
West African societies benefitted from trade because they would get useful items for their family and other important needs to support them.
women, by banning foot binding.
Hunter-gatherer societies had the benefit of a more varied and diverse diet, intimate knowledge of their environment, and a closer connection to nature through their lifestyle.
Nomadic pastoralist societies could benefit from the vast grasslands of the Great Plains for grazing their livestock. Agricultural societies with access to water sources like rivers could also thrive due to the fertile soil on the plains. Trading societies may also benefit from the open spaces for transportation routes and communication networks.
Europeans believed they had the right to take slaves during the Age of Exploration due to a combination of economic motives, a sense of racial superiority, and the belief that they were bringing civilization to inferior societies. This justification allowed them to exploit and subjugate people from other continents for their own benefit.
Food
Why don't African Americans become simply Americans. Is there benefit to their self segregation?
All people
African Americans were finally able to recieve an education.
Consumers are still being rational (sensible) when they purchase something that results in no benefit if they believed that it would give them benefit when they purchased it.
Hunter-gatherer societies benefited from intimate knowledge of their environment, strong social bonds within small groups, and a more diverse diet leading to better health and nutrition. Their lifestyle allowed for a more egalitarian social structure compared to later agricultural societies.