The Ecology of Learning-by-Building: Bridging Design Science and Natural History of Knowledge

A growing stream of research in Information Systems – Organizational Studies is focusing on Design Sciences, not only because a deep understanding of design processes is perceived as fundamental in order to enhance artifacts quality, but also because design activity is more and more understood as a powerful opportunity to create new knowledge. But what are the relationships between design as a pragmatic, problem-solving activity, and design as a learning activity? Moreover, what are the relationships between design as a learning activity, and "proper" scientific research? Even more importantly, under what conditions does successful learning-by-building more probably take place? Natural sciences, and Konrad Lorenz in particular, have given important contributions to answer these questions. This paper seeks to demonstrate how eco-evolutionary thought, which has been quite overlooked in our disciplinary field so far, could be useful to build an effective, multi-disciplinary, epistemologically sound basis to Design Sciences.