Mobilizing knowledge in frontline work: A conceptual framework and empirical exploration

Frontline workers bring different forms of knowledge to bear on decisions and actions. Even so,
knowledge has so far received limited attention in the street-level literature. This article develops
a nuanced understanding of what constitutes knowledge in frontline work and shows how different forms of knowledge are mobilized on the ground. Taking a practice-based and abductive
approach, the article draws on qualitative data from a multi-sited organizational ethnography in
three Danish child welfare agencies as well as insights from a broad range of literature to build
a conceptual framework for studying knowledge mobilization in frontline work. The framework
delineates three interdependent forms of knowledge—knowledge-that, knowledge-how, and
knowledge-by-acquaintance—that are all essential in frontline work. Knowledge-that is explicit
and includes research evidence. Knowledge-how is rooted in experience and acquired through
practice. Knowledge-by-acquaintance is rooted in encounters and denotes frontline workers’
“sense” of a case or situation. The empirical work shows how each form of knowledge is mobilized
in practice. The findings yield important insights into the dynamics of knowledge mobilization at
the frontlines, including the detrimental effects of rapid turnover, the conditions for realizing ideals
such as evidence-based practice and data-driven decision-making, and the potential implications
of digitalization and algorithmization