Une Ontologie Simonienne Du Monde De L'Artificiel

This tutorial puts Herbert Simon's (1916-2001) work on design into perspective. In fact, in the 1960s, this economist has tried to build a general theory of design. This tutorial gives some biographical references explaining why this decision theorist had an interest in design, which is not a usual object for an economist. Then we propose an ontology that synthesizes Simon's conceptualization of the world of the artificial. This last one integrates three key entities: the artefact, the design process defined as a form of problem-solving involving a specific rationality, and the sciences of the artificial seen as different from the natural sciences. A scientific balance of this ontology is made in order to establish its interests for design researchers. A bibliometrical study based on articles published in Design Studies is then realized. The researchers who edit this journal went further into the analysis of design process as a form of problem-solving. They however failed to explore some issues of Simon's design theory. The first one is related to the empirical foundations of the sciences of the artificial. The second one refers to the creative rationality underlying the designer's activity. Simon's work can still inspire new research issues in design theory.