Wisdom in the works of Information Professionals Australia Wisdom in the works of Information Professionals Dr. Asim Qayyum School of Information Studies

Discussion points Constructing and reconstructing knowledge Information discovery  Synthesis  Knowledge creation …………. Wisdom A wise person will be knowledgeable, but is a knowledgeable/intelligent person wise? Wisdom in the scriptures Identifying attributes of wisdom Modelling wisdom in the information profession. Zeleny (1987) model of information coversion.

Defining Wisdom …. Ability to foresee the long term consequences of an act …. A noun or a verb? ….Excellence of mind and virtues “The capacity to put into action the most appropriate behaviour, taking into account what is known (knowledge) and what does the most good (ethical and social considerations).” (Rowley, 2007) “By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third, by experience, which is the bitterest.” Quote attributed to Confucius by Kessler and Bailey (2007, p. xxvi)

Wisdom from scriptures Hocma in Hebrew (Judaism). Sophia (contemplative wisdom) or Phronesis (practical wisdom) in ancient Greek. (Aristotle) Hikmah in Arabic (Islam)

Role of Prior Knowledge Combining common knowledge with experiential knowledge Common knowledge Universal truths, or knowledge of profession. Experiential knowledge. Work, life, or cross cultural experiences Implicit to explicit conversion (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1996-2011) Age as a contributory factor.

Understanding prior Knowledge (To act) Knowledge workers are trained to ask task relevant questions right in the beginning (Drucker, 1999) Effectiveness versus efficiency (Ackoff, 1989) Effectiveness  Innovation and development Understanding happens at all levels (Bellinger, 2004) Every person understands differently based on their learning, experiences, and capability.

Improving the Understanding of Knowledge ‘Know thyself’ (Bennet and Bennet, 2008) Meditation Increased compassion, lower anxiety Self-reflection Discover the motivating and driving factors Understand the inner knowledge and use it with intent (Innate to Intent theory, Jones, 2005) Focus on signs and cues Gain familiarity with nonverbal and social behaviour

Beliefs, Ethics, Social & Moral values as drivers of wisdom The will to do the right thing (Schwartz and Sharpe, 2006) Motivation due to belief Religious and spiritually inspired ethical values important to maintain principles. Attain common good - Balance theory of wisdom (Sternberg, 2003) Three core values – ethical + social + moral. Project stakeholders must be remembered, recognised, and consulted before an action happens

References Much of this talk is based on: Qayyum, M. A. (2018). Modelling wisdom in learning and decision making. International Journal of Knowledge and Learning, 12(2), 146-166. Ackoff, R.L. (1989) ‘From data to wisdom’, Journal of Applied Systems Analysis, Vol. 16, pp.3–9. Bellinger, G., Castro, D. and Mills, A. (2004) Data, Information, Knowledge and Wisdom, Retrieved from geoffreyanderson.net/capstone/export/37/trunk/research/ackoffDiscussion.pdf Bennet, A. and Bennet, D. (2008) ‘Moving from knowledge to wisdom, from ordinary consciousness to extraordinary consciousness’, VINE, Vol. 38, No. 1, pp.7–15. Drucker, P.F. (1999) ‘Knowledge-worker productivity: the biggest challenge’, California Management Review, Vol. 41, No. 2, pp.79–94. Jones, C.A. (2005) ‘Wisdom paradigms for the enhancement of ethical and profitable business practices’, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 57, No. 4, pp.363–75. Kessler, E.H. and Bailey, J.R. (2007) ‘’Introduction: Understanding, applying and developing organisational and managerial wisdom’, Kessler, E.H. and Bailey, J.R. (Eds): Handbook of Organizational and Managerial Wisdom, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA. Nonaka, I. and Takeuchi, H. (2011) ‘The wise leader’, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 89, No. 5, pp.58–67, 146. Schwartz, B. and Sharpe, K.E. (2006) ‘Practical wisdom: aristotle meets positive psychology’, Journal of Happiness Studies, Vol. 7, No. 3, pp.377–95. Sternberg, R.J. (2003) Wisdom, Intelligence, and Creativity Synthesized, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK

Contact Information Dr. M. Asim Qayyum email: aqayyum@csu.edu.au Tel: +61 2 6933 2186 10 Brisbane Ave Barton, ACT, 2600 Australia