ABSTRACT
The need for abstract models in archaeology is equally acute, and perhaps more so, as prehistorians have until now been constricted by their inability to describe and explain their data except in terms of known historical situations, visualizable in human terms. A historical scale and vocabulary are too limited to encompass the variety of situations encountered in prehistory. The events of the Neolithic and Bronze Ages cannot necessarily be visualized in terms of any historical situation known to us. In analysing the development of prehistoric societies, aspects such as technological progress cannot be abstracted and considered in isolation. This chapter attempts to investigate the relationships between population levels, natural resources, technologies and patterns of exploitation, and social organization. Without an underlying framework of assumptions about the role of factors such as population growth there is no possibility of relating different aspects of prehistoric culture to each other and producing a convincing explanation for the contrasts in development between different areas.
