Paper short abstract:

This session considers how and why archaeology continues to struggle to develop multiscalar models of human sociality. It suggests that network-based analytical models may help us to develop more nuanced understandings of how the multiple scales of social life may have integrated.

Paper long abstract:

Social studies across many disciplines have demonstrated that human sociality operates on multiple scales, ranging from the intimate sphere of the person to larger-scaled, more dispersed networks of cooperation and exchange. Whilst archaeology has sought to participate in this discussion, its studies of human sociality have typically focused on single scales of interaction, such as the household, the settlement or the wider exchange network. To date, few (if any) studies have successfully merged these different scales of interaction into a single narrative, exploring in detail how these dimensions interact, influence and sometimes conflict with each other. This session considers how and why archaeology continues to struggle to develop models of human sociality that tackle the issue of how these different scales may have been integrated. In doing so, it explores factors such as the questions we ask, the theoretic models we apply and the diverse classes of archaeological evidence we utilise. Looking forward, the session suggests that a fresh look at network-based analytical models may help us to overcome some of these issues, moving us closer to the construction of more nuanced, multiscalar models of human sociality and social interaction.