Daniellou 2005 - the french speaking ergonomists approach to work activi

Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science Vol. 6, No. 5, September 2005, 409–427

The French-speaking ergonomists’ approach to work activity: cross-influences of field intervention and conceptual models
FRANCOIS DANIELLOU* ¸ ` Laboratoire d’Ergonomie des Systemes Complexes, ´ Universite Victor Segalen Bordeaux 2, France French-speaking ergonomists generally consider the concept of activity to be central in their approach to work and to changing it. However, their understanding of the term developed in a specific context, combining the influence of Soviet psychology with that of other forms of thinking already developed in France. Since then, the notion has received considerable input. The concept of activity as it has been developed in French-speaking countries (and thereafter in others like Brazil as it has spread) is not exactly identical to that developed by Engestrom, ¨ even if there are obviously many common points. The aim of this article is not to make a systematic international comparison of approaches all referring to the concept of activity. Rather, the author’s objective is limited to explaining the emergence of the concept as it is taught in France with its theoretical and methodological consequences. The reader should, therefore, not be unduly surprised by the focus on French-speaking ergonomists; this is not testimony to ignorance of the international literature, but constitutes the specific nature of this essay. If other authors attempt a similar clarification of thought at a later date, it will be easier for the international ergonomic community to distinguish the resemblances and differences between the approaches on an international level. Keywords: French-speaking ergonomics; Activity analysis; History of ergonomics

1. The emergence of a perspective Just before and after the Second World War, the analysis of work was developed in France by two teams, whose main area of study was not ergonomics but psychotechnics and the training of adults (Laville