Month: March 2022

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Tacit Knowledge | 2

At the outset, I spoke about the importance of the initial understanding of a skill and essentially how embedding basic knowledge is key to developing the skill to then advance tacit knowledge. I gave the example of performing shoulder-in on a horse, this could also be going back over lesson notes/videos to embed the information learned. But there is another way we can think about tacit knowledge which Barbara Bolt (2010, p. 29) describes as “material thinking” this is the knowing that arises through handling materials in a practice. Each practice has its own materials (or tools) which vary from discipline to discipline, but these materials are not just passive objects but are used instrumentally by the individual to achieve an outcome (Barrett and Bolt, 2010, p. 29). Whether that be a painting, creating a garment or a movement on a horse, each material will be used and applied differently by each person.  Bolt is an Australian academic and a painter herself, therefore her thoughts and reflections come first-hand. She unpicks the meaning of material thinking in comparison to Paul Carter’s book Material Thinking, she agrees with Carter that the joining of hand, eye and mind is where material thinking occurs (Barrett and Bolt, 2010, p. 30), but she disagrees when Carter believes that talking about practice with writers also contributes to the overall material thinking. Bolt believes talking about the work can articulate realisations but does not believe it can contribute to the tacit knowing of material thinking. I can understand Bolt’s perspective, as she appears to be thinking about the doing action or working with the materials to create something however, I think Carter’s talking to someone else (which doesn’t need to be a writer in any case) can also contribute to material thinking if you frame material thinking (the physical act of working with materials) as part of the development of tacit knowledge or knowing, then, I do also think talking about materials, tools, concepts, aids etc. does actually help in the development of tacit knowledge. For me, tacit knowledge should always be advancing, and I think it is important in any practice you engage with. Tacit knowledge is what sets you apart from others and can be gained in a multitude of ways.

When I think about tacit knowledge in regard to my own (research) practice and when teaching students I really do believe in the development of a skill by repetition (Denning and Dunham, 2012, p. 18). Anyone can teach you how to do something, but for you to achieve mastery you need to put in the hours and practice and experiment to advance your tacit knowledge, but this can also include ‘sidebar’ conversations with colleagues, students, or experts, which also contribute to your understanding. An example, last year I had training on a software called Optitex, for each 3hr session it probably took me 6hrs to go over the content to a point where I felt comfortable with that information, but since then I have experimented further using the techniques and tips and tricks learnt to apply to my own garments.  This has allowed me to develop my knowledge further, ask more questions and discover beyond what my previous knowledge was.  The nuances of each practice cannot be explicitly learned but come afterwards with experimentation and a deeper understanding of the skill.

Tacit knowledge is what sets creative practices apart. When we look at social sciences, they always talk about things needing to be repeatable (Snyder, 2019). But when we consider creative practice is anything repeatable? If more than one person was asked to draw a curve what are the chances that both curves would be the same…. impossible. There are so many different factors that can change or determine a person’s response – their culture, upbringing, learning difficulties such as dyslexia, mood etc. – all affect each individual’s interpretation and understanding. But this is also what makes creative practice exciting as there isn’t always a defined path to follow and depending on what materials are used and the individual’s tacit knowing will determine the outcome. This is what is so magical about tacit knowledge it is the unknown, the knowledge which cannot be documented verbatim and the knowing which allows for innovation.

References

Barrett, E. and Bolt, B. (2010) Practice as Research: Approaches to Creative Arts Enquiry. Reprint edition. London: I B Tauris & Co Ltd.

Denning, P.J. and Dunham, R. (2012) The Innovator’s Way: Essential Practices for Successful Innovation. The MIT Press.

Snyder, H. (2019) ‘Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines’, Journal of Business Research, 104, pp. 333–339. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.039.

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Tacit Knowledge | 1

Through studying the unit ‘research through practice’ I wanted to focus more on my practice rather than following the usual quantitative and qualitative approach to research, which I think comes a little more naturally to me because there are often rules and protocols to follow. But by focussing on my own ‘practice’ and deliberately using studying this MA as an opportunity to develop my own skills, I have come to realise research through practice isn’t as always clear cut, for me, this means I need to think more creatively and outside the box in terms of what I am researching, and I often find the concepts a little harder to grasp.  

From research around the area of practice as research the term tacit knowledge comes up a lot, and a term I have come to appreciate, as tacit knowledge is defined as the knowledge, skills and abilities an individual gains through experience, which can’t necessarily be documented verbatim (Oragui, 2020). An example I can share of not inhabiting the ‘know-how’ or having the experience to respond appropriately is from my recent horse-riding lessons. I have been learning a specific movement called Shoulder-in, which is when you ask the horse to walk on 3 tracks, with their inside shoulder off the track moving on an inner track (see Figure 1). Even though my instructor explains to me the aids I should be asking – the explicit knowledge (See figure 2): knowledge which can be easily documented and replicated (Oragui, 2020) – I don’t behold the tacit knowledge to tweak my own body movements or know what I should be feeling beneath me because I don’t have much experience in performing this movement. Therefore, this proves the importance of practice, to inhabit a skill, hours of experimentation, understanding and coming across different obstacles helps to embed the skill, which is trying to be learnt.

Figure 1: Horse doing the movement Shoulder-in
(Image taken from http://artfulriding.com/why-do-we-need-the-shoulder-in)
Figure 2: The difference between Explicit and Tacit knowledge (Oragui, 2020)

Denning and Dunham outline a “skill is not the same as a practice – the practice is the context of the skill” (2012, p. 21), so in my example, the practice would be horse riding but the skill would be performing the movement shoulder-in. Denning and Durham believe practice is the exercise of a profession or discipline with the development of a skill by repetition (2012, p. 18). Through practice of the skill the tacit knowledge advances, learning the little nuances of the practice, tips and tricks, and troubleshooting, which is the unknown of which Donald Schön refers to, as he frames practice as something that is not always known and constant (1984, p. 17).

Tacit Knowledge also relates to your working memory, Denning and Durham (2012, p. 4) describe this as ‘embodied skills’ developing those automatic habits or muscle memory to perform an action, gaining those automatic habits, gives the individual greater capacity for their working memory to think about the task at hand. While I have been learning the movement shoulder-in my working memory has been on overdrive, as before I even think about asking for the movement, I need to ensure I have the horse going in a nice outline, the rhythm is good, as well as plan-ahead what I am about to do and ask the correct aids to hopefully feel what I’m supposed to feel. David Oragui (2020) highlights in his piece that individuals “don’t know what they don’t know” often when learning we are too afraid to ask the question in fear that we will look stupid or worse be embarrassed because we should already know that!? As the teacher or the expert, we often take for granted our previous knowledge and omit this when delivering, making assumptions the students or individuals we are sharing knowledge with already know what we are talking about. So, I think collating some of these thoughts from these 3 pieces, it is important to ensure your own understanding and ask the question to help fully grasp the concept, after we have all the information, then further practice will then aid in our development of tacit knowledge and embedding that muscle memory to give us more space to advance further and innovate.

This piece of writing perhaps took a different route than I first anticipated but is still equally important. Although the new skills I am learning for my MA are nothing to do with horse-riding, writing this allowed me to highlight the importance of understanding first and then the tacit knowledge will arrive with further practice and collaboration.  

References

Denning, P.J. and Dunham, R. (2012) The Innovator’s Way: Essential Practices for Successful Innovation. The MIT Press.

Oragui, D. (2020) Tacit Knowledge: Definition, Examples, and Importance, Helpjuice. Available at: https://helpjuice.com/blog/tacit-knowledge (Accessed: 1 March 2022).

Schön, D. (1984) The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think In Action. 1st edition. New York: Basic Books.