TAKING STOCK OF SOCIAL THEORY IN SOUTHEASTERN ARCHAEOLOGY

This paper introduces a collection of seven papers on archaeological theory in the southeastern United States, originally presented as a plenary session of the 2012 meeting of the Southeastern Archaeological Conference in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I explain the original idea for the session and present the instructions given in advance to the participants.     

Geography and development

Economic development and underdevelopment is one aspect of theuneven spatial distribution of economic activity. This paperreviews existing literature on geography and development, andargues that rigorous theoretical and empirical analysis is neededto increase understanding of the role of geography in developmentand to better design development policy. The analytical issuesare: why does economic activity cluster in centers of activity?How do new centers develop? And what are the consequences ofremoteness from existing centers? Empirical evidence comes bothfrom the international context and from studies of internaleconomic geography and urbanization.