Territorial Decision-Making in the Face of Complexity: A Case for Interpretive Rationality

Abstract

This article is based on a conceptual and critical review of the literature to examine the limitations of instrumental rationality — whether perfect, substantive, or bounded — when confronted with the complexity of territorial decision-making processes. Rooted in standard economic models that assume stable environments and utility-maximizing rational agents, instrumental rationality proves inadequate for accounting for contexts characterized by uncertainty, conflicting interests, and the diversity of social representations. In contrast, interpretative rationality, as developed within the economics of conventions and critical organizational theories, offers a more appropriate analytical framework for understanding territorial dynamics. It highlights the central role of context, social norms, shared beliefs, and actor interactions in the co-construction of meaning and the orientation of decision-making. The territorial actor is thus conceived as a homo conventionalis, whose decisions emerge less from optimizing calculations than from processes of collective learning, negotiated compromises, and social interpretation. By reintegrating cognitive, social, and symbolic dimensions into the study of decision-making, interpretative rationality provides a conceptually robust paradigm for understanding and improving governance within complex territorial systems.

Classification JEL : H11, H19

Paper type : Theoretical Research