a student of henri bergson and émile durkheim, simiand advanced a view of economics as a social science grounded in observable phenomena rather than convenient assumptions. this would imply a large program of historical and statistical research. joseph schumpeter, who denied the existence of a french or an italian historical school despite the historical current evident in their economics, acknowledged the significance of simiand's contributions. in schumpeter's view, simiand should be considered a french institutionalist.