Alternative Models of Scientific Explanation

Abstract

In response to archaeologists' interests in models of scientific explanation, this paper surveys several “covering‐law” models. Primary emphasis is on a critical comparison of Hempel's deductive‐nomological and inductive‐statistical models, and Meehan's systems model, with the more recent statistical‐relevance model. The crucial difference hinges on certain relevance conditions. Two advantages of the latter model—of possible interest to anthropologists and of especial interest to archaeologists—are its ability to incorporate explanations of low‐probability events and its potential for furnishing an account of functional explanation. Advanced toward the end are suggestions for supplementing the statistical‐relevance model with causal relevance factors. [scientific explanation, systems theory, covering‐law, statistical relevance]