Yep,, Now what am I going to make, functional point, functional art or just art.hmmmm Bob
I think this is a real good point you make. Does form follow function or function follow form. With arrowheads it is a real good question because "style" meant something to those who were creating points. We have many different forms that accomplish the same task. So you have hit on a really good point that I don't have an easy answer to.
I think it is safe to say that form follows function.
Probably thousands of hafted foreshafts, fit with projectile points, have been recovered, from archaeological contexts, in both North America, and Central America. If you look at these foreshafts, with hafted points, you can see how the points match up to the hafting. It would be worth posting photos of such foreshafts, with fitted points. They usually are found in dry cave sites, rock shelters, etc, in the west, and in desert areas.
Also, this thread may say something about Clovis. In some cases, Clovis repair stations are found, where broken Clovis points were removed from the hafts, and new points were refitted, with the broken points being discarded.
What I realized while reading this thread is that the Clovis haft must have been stronger than the Clovis point. So, when "push came to shove" it was the point that broke upon impact. And, from this I think that it can be inferred that the haft had to have been stronger than the point.
That being said, I believe I ran across a comment years ago, while going through ethnological literature. And, according to the comment, I believe it was explained that California arrowmakers made more deeply hafted points, for greater strength. I do not remember where I read this. If I took a guess, it might have been in the works of Otis Tufton Mason, but I cannot say for sure. I believe it was from an early author, an individual who was acquainted with the works of California arrowmakers. So, Mason is the best guess.
Also, it might be of value to study examples of points found embedded in bone. This could indicate the inherent strength of different point types. And, if parts of the point broke, during impact, it may give clues regarding the weaker areas.