BROADENING THE SCOPE: EXPLORING THREE KNOWLEDGE DISTINCTIONS.
Carlos Rodriguez‐Lluesma, Diane E. Bailey · Academy of Management Proceedings · 2005
In this paper, we draw three knowledge distinctions. The first distinction, borrowed from Polanyi (1966, 1969), separates tacit from explicit knowledge, and is based on the codifiability of knowledge. The second distinction, between theoretical and practical knowledge, categorizes knowledge based on its product. The product in theoretical knowledge is an understanding of its object, whereas in practical knowledge it is the manipulation or creation of its object. We argue that practical knowledge enables individuals to creatively fill the gaps between their theoretical knowledge of the world and the world in actuality. Emotions coupled with cognition play a key role in this gap-filling process. The third distinction separates physical knowledge (knowledge of objects) from social knowledge (knowledge of humans). Physical knowledge is universal; social knowledge is essentially communal and normative. We provide examples of the eight kinds of knowledge resulting from the intersections of the three distinctions and show how they have variously, but not systematically, been considered in prior literature. We argue that the use of the three knowledge distinctions would benefit the field of organization studies in the realm of empirical studies of modern occupations, macro considerations of knowledge creation and acquisition, and the extension of organizational theory.