Theories of the Mind and the Stakes for the Researchers in Cognitive Science

This paper is concerned with the analysis of the theories of the mind proposed by the researchers in cognitive science and the stakes linked to the construction of this domain. The first part of this work deals with the analysis of the texts, discourses, references and representations of the most famous actors of the construction of the cognitive science. Some maintain that the logic is the most suitable mean to study the cognitive processes, whereas others believe that it is the study of the brain functioning. The aim of the paper is to understand the cultural universe of the researchers in cognitive science, what philosophical choices they adopt and how their practices and formation affect their conceptions. The second part of the paper deals with the institutional aspects of the construction of the cognitive science in France .