Living in Culture

Do you remember when you first learned to ride a bike? I remember the day my neighbor held onto the end of my bike as I struggled to pedal around my cul-de-sac. But then, she let go, and I was doing it! I was riding my bike without training wheels! The hardest part for me was that there were no specific instructions to follow. Ever since I was little, I have loved things that come with a checklist, tasks that have a beginning, middle, and end. However, there is no manual for riding a bike. You learn through repeated trial and error. No one can clearly explain to you how to ride a bike; it’s knowledge someone cannot fully articulate. This phenomenon I just explained is coined “tacit knowledge,” a term I knew very little about before writing my research paper on Sri Lankan foods and rituals.

Tacit knowledge specifically “refers to the understanding and skills that individuals possess but find difficult to articulate or convey to others” (Sheposh). The concept was originally developed by Michael Polanyi, who investigated the philosophical aspect of scientific thought. He explained the idea with the phrase “we know more than we can tell”. This philosophy explains that skilled knowledge often outpaces our ability to explain it in words.

There are many real-world examples of this idea. For example, no one can outright explain some social skills to you, for example, reading a room, or knowing when to end a conversation. Those are skills that are developed over time and through experience. Another example can be found in the workplace. A veteran employee may know exactly how to pitch an idea to make sure it lands well among a sea of investors; however, they may struggle to explain their technique to others. Furthermore, this idea can be seen through cultural traditions. When conducting my research, I noticed that my grandmother could clearly explain the rituals she participates in to me, but struggled to explain why she did them. She could articulate their significance, but not why they were significant enough to her to continue with them.

Organizations often try to organize everything into manuals and checklists, but tacit knowledge fights back against these practices. This can create real problems, including losing valuable knowledge if an expert retires. However, problems arise beyond just the workplace. Tacit knowledge can be involved in the loss of culture if something like a tradition is lost between generations.

However, it is important to consider how tacit knowledge is actually passed on. Apprenticeships, mentorships, imitations, working alongside someone, and trial and error are all ways tacit knowledge is transmitted. In other cases, my grandmother learned cultural traditions from her mother and grandmother by just observing and internalizing the practices on her own. Due to its nature, tacit knowledge can be severely limited in places of remote or pure text-based learning. Tacit knowledge is why learning through experiences can be just as valuable as learning in a classroom.

References: Sheposh, R. (2025). Tacit knowledge | EBSCO. In EBSCO Information Services, Inc. | http://www.ebsco.com. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/religion-and-philosophy/tacit-knowledge