x * Corresponding Author Received: 11, Jan. 2021 Accepted: 21, Jun. 2021 Abstract: The doctrine of representationalism is rooted in the philosophy of mind and cognitive sciences, but it can also be traced in the philosophy of language. The purpose of this paper is to apply representationalist approaches in language and meaning to knowledge and information science research. Therefore, in the frst part, the application and achievements of representationalism for information retrieval action are analyzed. Studies are categorized according to their level of concern to language and meaning in organization and information retrieval. Then, in the second part, the representational approaches to Language in Information Retrieval Action (LIRA) are analyzed and criticized in the related research. In this analysis, philosophical approaches have been considered because the roots of representationalism can be traced in semantics and semiotics in linguistic approach. Representationalism with emphasis on the linguistic dimension in the organization and information retrieval research is a theory that is advocated due to the constant relationship between words and the world they represent. In this study representationalism in semantic tools (such as thesauri, subject headings, and classifcations) consists of all processes (from indexing to user information searching and retrieval) called Information Retrieval Action (IRA), and can be criticized in various ways. Some studies focus on the nature of knowledge representation and fnd it in the philosophy of language. Some theoretical studies criticize representationalism by addressing cognitive sciences and related areas in Analysis and Critique of Representationalism in Information Retrieval Action Mahboobeh Farashbashi Astaneh PhD Candidate; Knowledge and Information Science; Ferdowsi University of Mashhad; Mashhad, Iran Email: astaneh@um.ac.ir Mohsen Nowkarizi* Professor; Knowledge and Information Science; Ferdowsi University of Mashhad; Mashhad, Iran Email: mnowkarizi@um.ac.ir Hasan Behzadi Assistant Professor; Knowledge and Information Science; Ferdowsi University of Mashhad; Mashhad, Iran; Email: hasanbehzadi@um.ac.ir Bakhtiar Shabani Varaki Professor; Department of Philosophy of Education; Ferdowsi University of Mashhad; Mashhad, Iran Email: bshabani@um.ac.ir Iranian Research Institute for Information Science and Technology (IranDoc) ISSN 2251-8223 eISSN 2251-8231 Indexed by SCOPUS, ISC, & LISTA Vol. 37 | No. 2 | pp. 497-526 Winter 2022 https://doi.org/10.52547/jipm.37.2.497