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Hayek on tacit knowledge

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 May 2010

FUAT OĞUZ
FUAT OĞUZ*
Affiliation:
Başkent University, Ankara, Turkey
*
*Email: foguz@baskent.edu.tr
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Abstract:

This paper discusses the place of ‘tacit knowledge’ in Hayek's writings. How did Hayek understand tacit knowledge? How did his understanding change through time? I address these questions and follow the change in Hayek's works from skills and techniques of thought in the 1930s to the use of ‘tacit knowledge’ in the1960s. Hayek uses Polanyi's concept in many writings, but remains short of approving its implications. The paper emphasizes that while Hayek was quite aware of the differences between tacit knowing and knowing-how, he was not keen to stress the divergence. In the end, I offer some potential explanations for this preference.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Institutional Economics , Volume 6 , Issue 2 , June 2010 , pp. 145 - 165
Copyright
Copyright © The JOIE Foundation 2010

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