Investigating KM antecedents: KM in the criminal justice system

Purpose – The specific aim of this paper is to explore the multi-disciplinary academic antecedents of KM in order to better understand KM. By doing so, it is suggested that KM can be more effectively applied in real-world situations, such as professional occupations. Design/methodology/approach – The approach is conceptual: five core antecedents of KM – philosophy, sociology, psychology, computing and information systems, and management – are explored and associated with the criminal investigation process. Findings – KM antecedents can be applied to the professional discipline of criminal investigation to create a conceptual model of knowledge management for the criminal investigative process. The model offers guidance on ways in which KM can be understood in terms of the criminal investigative process. Research limitations/implications – KM has been considered a somewhat nebulous subject, so there is value in exploring its multidisciplinary roots to gain a better understanding of it and how it can be more effectively applied in specific organizational or practitioner contexts. Practical implications – By mapping the KM antecedents to the criminal investigation process a conceptual model has been developed, which it is believed could prove useful in helping police organizations, as well as academics studying the criminal justice system, to better understand the discipline of KM in the context of law enforcement-related work. Originality/value – While KM antecedents have been identified, the paper is one of the first to explicitly show how they can be used to link KM to real world situations – in this case the criminal investigative process.