Other disciplines, such as geology, botany and biology, chemistry, and mathematics began to be more involved in the archaeological field during this period. Artifacts were to be understood as the material relics of social and cultural behavior. However, some scholars disagreed with this concept. Paul Martin stated that a culture couldn't be considered as physical objects, nor generalized by the similar styles or types of the objects. Irving Rouse also argued that a culture couldn't be inherent in the artifacts.
Culture is a relationship between the object and the people who made and used it.
Walter W. Taylor noted that historiography was necessary in archaeological research, and used artifacts to reconstruct the cultural context. In this period, many archaeologists began to realize the environmental aspects that affected cultural development. E.W.Gifford 's California shellmounds showed the relationships between the native cultures and the environment. Julian H.Steward developed the environmental-evolutionary theory, known as cultural ecology or multilinear evolution. The natural environment determines the cultural development and technological adaptations.