Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
7.1.4 Knowledge Silos
A knowledge gulf appears to exist between the ICT domain, and the public
policy making and planning domains. In the latter, the development and
application of 'social science' knowledge about human behaviour is the
norm. In the former, the emphasis still tends to be on the creating and ap-
plication of engineering and physical science knowledge. This is in spite of
the fact that a significant body of knowledge exists about the relationship
between people and ICT. Since the 1970s, the rapid development and pro-
liferation of computer systems has been accompanied by a proliferation of
research across a wide range of disciplines. Cognitive psychologists and
ergonomists have been investigating the design of interfaces, software and
hardware in order to make computers easier and more effective to use by
the non-specialist user. In parallel, industrial psychologists and sociolo-
gists have been examining the impact of the new technology upon work,
jobs, social networks and society. At the same time, business consultants
and management scientists have investigated the financial and organisa-
tional costs and benefits of computerisation.
From these many endeavours, a vast but disparate body of knowledge
concerning the relationship between people and technology and issues of
uptake of ICT has developed. This body of knowledge continues to grow
in abundance although, if anything, it is becoming even more fragmented.
As technology has developed and spread across many different domains,
pockets of specialist knowledge have built up within those domains, and
new domains have arisen, for example: health informatics, ICT in the con-
struction sector, games and entertainment applications, domotics and
transport technology, (as evidenced by the spawning of ever more aca-
demic journals devoted to each of these areas of knowledge). While the
importance of understanding and meeting the needs of stakeholders - es-
pecially the users - is a common theme in the literature and practice across
almost all of these domains, there is little sharing of knowledge between
them. Klein (2005) comments, “e
ngineers read what engineers have writ-
ten, social scientists read what social scientists have written; when a so-
cial scientist publishes a paper in an engineering journal as I (Klein) have
occasionally done, it reaches neither database
”. The existence of such
'knowledge silos' means that knowledge and good practice developed in
one domain is not routinely or easily shared to the benefit of others. In par-
ticular, ignoring social science knowledge condemns ICT developments to
repeat the mistakes of the past.
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