Developing the core principles of responsible knowledge management (rKM): Section 1.3 – Objectives of this research

This article is Section 1.3 of a series featuring my Master’s thesis The Emerging Concept of Responsible Knowledge Management (rKM): Identifying and Formulating the Core Principles of rKM.

It is the purpose of this research to investigate the concept of rKM as initially outlined by Professor Susanne Durst¹. As a field with multidisciplinary history, KM is inevitably characterised by a legion of definitions, reflecting the diverse perspectives of researchers and the contexts in which it is applied. This variety naturally extends to rKM, a concept which is just beginning to emerge.

However, it is apparent from Professor Susanne Durst’s viewpoint paper that rKM introduces additional adjunct features that KM has not, thus far, included. For her, the concept of rKM consists of the ideas of:

• responsibility, conceptualised primarily in the context of inclusivity
• sustainability, conceptualised in the context of pursuing a sustainable ecosystem at the world level
• systems thinking, conceptualised in the context of wicked problems and collaborative KM approaches for pursuing common good.

Responsible knowledge management therefore appears to provide a framework for addressing the complexities of the contemporary world by reimagining knowledge not as a commodity to be exploited but as a shared means of collaborative effort toward sustainability.

By inductively tracing and interpreting the elements of rKM, the objective of this research is to provide a conceptual outline that could serve as a catalyst for further scholarly inquiry into the evolution of KM. Through the analysis of academic discourse on responsibility in KM, this research hopes to reposition knowledge as a phenomenon embedded within broader societal and ecological contexts.

The aim of identifying and analysing the emerging themes, contradictions, and conceptual gaps in the academic literature contributes directly to the theorising of a grounded yet flexible framework for rKM that could enable more responsible, sustainable, and purpose-driven approach to knowledge management. In doing so, the thesis not only contributes to clarifying the conceptual contours of rKM but also lays groundwork for future investigation into its practical application.

Next part: Section 1.4 – The structure of the research and this series.

Article source: Koskinen, H. M. (2025). The Emerging Concept of Responsible Knowledge Management (rKM): Identifying and Formulating the Core Principles of rKM. (Master’s Thesis, LUT University).

Header image source: Created by Hanna M. Koskinen using ChatGPT.

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