Knowledge Democratization

A Knowledge Democratization is a knowledge distribution process that removes knowledge access barriers to enable widespread knowledge availability and universal knowledge participation.

• AKA: Information Democratization, Knowledge Liberation, Expertise Accessibility.
• Context:
  • It can typically eliminate Knowledge Gatekeepers through direct access mechanism.
  • It can typically reduce Knowledge Cost Barriers through free distribution model.
  • It can typically simplify Knowledge Complexitys through accessible format.
  • It can typically expand Knowledge Reachs through digital platform.
  • It can typically accelerate Knowledge Transfers through instant availability.
  • ...
  • It can often empower Knowledge Consumers through self-service capability.
  • It can often challenge Knowledge Authoritys through expertise distribution.
  • It can often require Knowledge Quality Controls through validation mechanism.
  • It can often create Knowledge Communitys through collaborative platform.
  • ...
  • It can range from being a Partial Knowledge Democratization to being a Complete Knowledge Democratization, depending on its democratization scope.
  • It can range from being a Passive Knowledge Democratization to being an Active Knowledge Democratization, depending on its democratization method.
  • It can range from being a Domain-Specific Knowledge Democratization to being a Universal Knowledge Democratization, depending on its democratization breadth.
  • ...
  • It can be enabled by Digital Platforms through distribution infrastructure.
  • It can be accelerated by Open Source Movements through sharing culture.
  • It can be supported by Educational Initiatives through literacy program.
  • ...
• Example(s):
  • Technology Knowledge Democratizations, such as:
    • Internet Knowledge Democratization for global information access.
    • Open Source Knowledge Democratization for code sharing.
    • Wikipedia Knowledge Democratization for encyclopedia access.
  • Professional Knowledge Democratizations, such as:
    • Medical Knowledge Democratization for health information access.
    • Legal Knowledge Democratization for law understanding.
    • Financial Knowledge Democratization for investment literacy.
  • Educational Knowledge Democratizations, such as:
    • MOOC Knowledge Democratization for course access.
    • Open Textbook Knowledge Democratization for educational material.
    • YouTube Knowledge Democratization for tutorial availability.
  • ...
• Counter-Example(s):
  • Knowledge Monopolization, which restricts knowledge access to privileged groups.
  • Knowledge Commodification, which maintains financial barriers to knowledge acquisition.
  • Knowledge Obfuscation, which preserves complexity barriers to understanding.
• See: Open Access, Digital Divide, Information Literacy, Knowledge Management.

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