home > TRiO and USP Programs > McNair > symposium > 2005 presentations > Kelly Shaw

Kelly Shaw
Anthropology

Theresa O'Nell, Mentor

Eclecticism and Archaeology

Within archaeology, a long-standing tradition of interdisciplinarity and eclecticism has helped to produce better understandings of material culture and human cultural development. Many scholars actively support the development of cross-disciplinary approaches within archaeology, and anthropology as a whole. However, Thomas Kuhn has argued that separate conceptual frameworks cannot be interpenetrating because they are based upon different statements about the world, resulting in a view of the scientific process that contradicts eclectic and interdisciplinary research. This paper conducts a critical analysis of eclecticism as a part of scientific practice. It seeks to determine the potential for eclectic research and to provide a logical foundation for eclectic practice. A case study from archaeology is highlighted to illustrate eclectic practice and to test the logical framework provided here.