The Philosopher's Corner

Abstract

This paper presents the idea of knowledge object as the basis of a new way to think about knowledge in IS. An imagined 'epistemology for use' defines science in terms of creating and improving collections of knowledge objects. A taxonomy of knowledge objects identifies different types, but recognizes that terms such as theory and model are sometimes seen as overlapping with other terms in the taxonomy. Major parts of the taxonomy are discussed in separate sections related to non-abstract versus abstract knowledge objects, concepts, generalizations, methods and practices, and buzzwords. A discussion section looks at aspects of a deep understanding of any specific knowledge object, starting with the definition and including domain, synonyms, value-in-use, history, source, degree of abstraction, and degree of specificity. A brief concluding section suggests next steps for further development of the paper's ideas.