NCJ Number
49715
Date Published
1976
Length
461 pages
Annotation
THE PROBLEMS AND PROCESSES OF KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION ARE EXAMINED, WITH A FOCUS ON THE DETERMINANTS OF KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION, PROCESS STAGES, THE LINKAGE BETWEEN RESEARCH AND PRACTICE, AND THE SEARCH FOR UTILIZATION MODELS.
Abstract
KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION AS A FIELD OF STUDY IS CONCERNED WITH: (1) DEVELOPING INSIGHTS, BOTH ON THE PART OF KNOWLEDGE PRODUCERS AND KNOWLEDGE USERS, INTO THE UNDERLYING PROCESSES OF KNOWLEDGE DEVELOPMENT, DISSEMINATION, AND IMPLEMENTATION; (2) IDENTIFYING FACTORS THAT ACCOUNT FOR DELAY IN ADAPTATION OR ADOPTION FOLLOWING THE DEVELOPMENT STAGE; AND (3) GENERATING STRATEGIES OR MEASURES FOR ENHANCING APPROPRIATE AND TIMELY UTILIZATION. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE PROBLEM OF KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION IS PROVIDED. DETERMINANTS OF KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION ARE DETAILED, WITH EMPHASIS ON CHANGE, PROJECT, COMMUNICATION, ORGANIZATIONAL, AND PERSONAL VARIABLES. STAGES IN THE PROCESS OF KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION ARE UNDERSCORED, INCLUDING: CONCERN AND AWARENESS; PROBLEM CLARIFICATION; THE SEARCH FOR PERTINENT KNOWLEDGE; CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS; THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CHANGE STRATEGIES; AND EVALUATION AND FOLLOWTHROUGH. THIS IS FOLLOWED BY A DISCUSSION OF THE LINKAGE BETWEEN RESEARCH AND PRACTICE WHICH HIGHLIGHTS PRACTITIONER-RESEARCHER RELATIONSHIPS, INFORMATION RETRIEVAL AND DISSEMINATION, AND CHANGE AGENT LINKAGE. FINALLY, THE SEARCH FOR MODELS OF RESEARCH UTILIZATION IS REVIEWED. SEVERAL TYPES OF MODELS ARE ILLUSTRATED AND DESCRIPTIONS OF RESEARCH UTILIZATION MODELS ARE PROVIDED. THE BULK OF THE VOLUME IS DEVOTED TO APPENDED SUMMARIES OF SELECTED LITERATURE. THE SUMMARIES ARE ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY BY AUTHOR AND NOTE THE PURPOSE, METHOD, FINDINGS, AND CONCLUSIONS OF LITERATURE A AVAILABLE ON VARIOUS ASPECTS OF KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION. IN ALL, 267 CITATIONS ARE INCLUDED. A BIBLIOGRAPHY AND INDEXES TO THE SUMMARIES ARE PROVIDED. (KBL)