Bridging ‘The Great Divide’: Nonaka's Synthesis of ‘Western’ and ‘Eastern’ Knowledge Concepts Reassessed
批判性地考察了野中郁次郎知识创造理论的哲学假设，分析其整合‘西方’显性知识与‘东方’隐性知识的尝试，揭示当前争议的核心认识论问题。
Knowledge management remains one of the most debated topics in current management literature. In particular, Nonaka's interpretation of Polanyi's distinction between explicit and tacit knowledge and his approach of framing the knowledge generation process in terms of an interaction between ‘Western’ (predominately explicit) and ‘Eastern’ (predominantly tacit) knowledge types have been repeatedly discussed and criticized. In this context, management research increasingly has to address questions pertaining to philosophical theories. The present article offers a critical investigation of Nonaka's philosophical assumptions and thus sheds light on the core issues pertaining to the nature of knowledge underlying the current controversial discourse on this subject. The strengths and weaknesses of Nonaka's quest to integrate ‘Western’ and ‘Eastern’ knowledge into the framework of his comprehensive knowledge creation theory will be outlined at the end of a thorough investigation of the salient epistemological notions cited by Nonaka as the basis for his knowledge creation theory.