Models, Schemes, and Diagrams

The present work to the discussion of the notion of a model, establishing an epistemic distinction between model and scheme. This differentiation will allow us to show, from a semio-philosophic perspective, that a scheme corresponds to the subjective operations of individual cognition, while the term model focuses on the description of the intersubjective operations proper to a society or culture. Our objective is to bring forward the notion of a diagram for cognitive sciences: specifically, we consider that the diagrammatic thought proposed by Charles S. Peirce (1992, 2012) allows us to more adequately characterize the functions of modeling experience.