Tacit knowledge and the epistemology of expertise in strategic marketing management

Abstract

Discusses issues concerning the relationship between codified marketing theory and practical strategic marketing expertise, particularly with respect to the importance of “tacit” or unarticulated knowledge. The trajectory of argument draws attention to the role of words as symbolic modelling devices and explores implications of this position for theorising marketing expertise. Makes use of a multidisciplinary perspective and draws material from work in cognitive science, the psychology of expertise and the philosophy of science. Sets the problematisation of practical theory in marketing within a broader context of a possible epistemological “crisis” of rationality in practical disciplines. The conclusion suggests that an epistemology of expertise for marketing management demands both theoretical and linguistic sophistication and implies a pedagogic shift towards a model of philosophic enquiry in marketing.