The role of violent conflict in prehistory has been the focus of substantial research and fierce debates. Resolving some of the fundamental questions has been difficult due to the scarcity of data and conceptual challenges concerning the assumed causes and consequences. In well-studied regions, estimates for the general prevalence of conflict are now available, but more detailed analysis of spatial-temporal patterns is still impossible. In this talk, I will review recent evidence for conflicts in prehistory and their interpretations, along with a broader discussion on the social context of conflicts and why this is important. I will argue that the importance of conflict goes beyond those who directly participate in it, and that emergent cultural norms related to the possibility of conflict and for the avoidance of conflicts can have a substantial role in shaping prehistoric social interactions. I will also briefly discuss our group’s recent work showing how computational models together with data can be used to better understand the wider scope of conflicts, compared to what is possible based on only direct evidence.