Interdisciplinary Study Of Visual And Verbal Cooperation In Technical Document

Résumé En

In this paper, we examine through a multidisciplinaryapproach – at the crossroad of discourse analysis,semiotics and cognitive psychology – text-figure relations intechnical communication. These relations are firstlyanalysed by means of the inner structure of each mode ofexpression, privileging an approach inspired by thesemiotics. Emphasis is placed on examining perceivablerealizations – in the figure, in the text and in the document– which make the text and the figure complementary oreven indissolubly linked in the construction of the message.Hypotheses formulated in this way are tested through anexperimental evaluation involving users of technicaldocuments. This step, in accordance with cognitivepsychology and ergonomics methods, confirms that textand figure, sometimes cooperating, sometimes competingin the expression of technical message, become equalpartners in its interpretation.