Having broadly defined the process of curriculum formation as a complex set of interactions among many specified internal and external factors, the authors review the field of curriculum theory with the goal of finding the most potent theory for structuring and guiding studies of how changes occur in the curriculum of American public schools. For the purposes of analysis, curriculum theory is organized into four categories according to the theorists who view curriculum development as (1) a technical process performed by professionals, (2) a field to be studied inductively, (3) a product of the interaction of various individuals and groups, and (4) a concept to be re-conceptualized. After considering the merits of using the theories comprising these four categories, the authors discuss the worth of an eclectic theory combining elements of the first three categories. The authors advocate use of Paul Peterson's theory of educational decision making as a basis upon which to construct an eclectic theory. They suggest that such an eclectic theory would serve as a "worthy" conceptual framework for organizing data and unifying scholarly consideration of the process of curriculum formation. (Author/LH)