This model was originally proposed as a distinctive perspective on knowledge-management frameworks in Japanese companies. It also explains how knowledge is created.
First, we need to understand that knowledge has two forms: tacit and explicit.
Tacit knowledge includes personal insights and experiential understanding. It is a kind of feeling held in an individual’s mind that can only be understood intuitively.
Explicit knowledge includes language distilled from experience, as well as written notes and models. It takes forms that can be expressed.
The SECI model describes the process by which tacit and explicit knowledge are transformed. It identifies four dimensions of knowledge: socialization, externalization, organization, and internalization. The initial letters of these four dimensions spell SECI.
The creation of new knowledge comes from the circulation of existing knowledge through these four dimensions, as follows:
Socialization is an individual's inner realization: before formally communicating with others, they begin to develop a relatively clear awareness. It is the process in which tacit knowledge begins to move outward.
Externalization is the private sharing of an individual's insights within a small circle. These insights gradually take shape as something that can be expressed publicly; it is the process through which tacit knowledge becomes explicit knowledge.
Combination is the process in which knowledge that has been made public is integrated and refined into a more systematic body of knowledge that can be widely disseminated; it is the process by which explicit knowledge is further externalized.
Internalization is the process in which systematic knowledge is absorbed by other individuals, giving rise among them to new inner realizations; it is the process by which explicit knowledge becomes new tacit knowledge.
One way to understand it is that the socialization, externalization, combination, and internalization of knowledge—and the transitions into and out of each—overlap with one another. Each completed upward spiral brings a new round of innovation in knowledge; this is how knowledge is created. Put more plainly, first I think of something, then I say it out loud and discuss it with everyone, bouncing ideas around. Then I revise it a bit and share it with more people. Once everyone knows about it, learns from it, and uses it, someone may think of something new through that use, starting the next round of discussion and idea-sharing and creating new knowledge again.
According to the theory, all four dimensions of knowledge require a corresponding space for incubation—in other words, a field. These are the originating field, dialogue field, system field, and practice field. Put simply,
The originating field is where feelings are turned into inspiration—for example, a café where you can think quietly or a cubicle where you can chat casually.
The dialogue field is where inspiration is drawn out and made known to others, such as work notes or posts shared on social media.
The system field is where these things are organized into systematic knowledge and disseminated, such as through public speaking.
The practice field is where you absorb, understand, and apply it—for example, in libraries, training facilities, or while doing exercises. In the practice field, we can still find new inspiration, new ways to solve problems, and new patterns of movement through reading, solving problems, and training. We can then summarize them again and share them, forming the next cycle of knowledge dissemination.
First, the creation and dissemination of knowledge cannot be separated. Only when knowledge circulates and the seeds of knowledge are sown, enabling people to gain insights, can they go on to develop new knowledge.
Second, action and thought cannot be separated either. Only by actively sharing our own knowledge and learning from others' knowledge through action can we stimulate our brains to absorb and create knowledge. Reviewing the past is action; understanding the heart is thought.
The third field is very important. It is both an environmental setting and a matter of atmosphere and timing, and it has a significant effect in motivating people's actions and thoughts. Therefore, in the dimensions of knowledge transformation, we can proactively create the corresponding fields so that we can acquire more knowledge and create more knowledge.
For example
In the socialization phase, create an originating space. When you gain insight into a particular phenomenon, create an informal, quiet environment and find a close friend with whom you can share your feelings, allowing this feeling to emerge through interaction and resonance.
In the externalization phase, create a dialogue space. When a clear feeling has received affirmation from others and proved effective through testing, take action by putting your insight into writing and publishing it in personal media or presenting it at a personal sharing session.
In the combination phase, create a system space. Once this knowledge has been openly discussed and received some feedback and additions, it can be organized and refined in preparation for developing and publishing it. For example, turn it into teaching materials or an article, present it in class, or publish it online to stimulate a sense of achievement.
In the internalization phase, create a practice space. When you feel that you have learned a certain kind of knowledge from others, create an opportunity or environment in which you can use it, including a training venue; use new training exercises; apply the method to solve problems that were previously difficult; or use the method to make a thorough summary at a particular stage. This allows you to enjoy the benefits of the new method while also encouraging new insights into the knowledge you have absorbed.