---
title: SECI model (Knowledge Spiral)
summary: Nonaka and Takeuchi’s model describing how knowledge is created through iterative conversion among tacit and explicit forms via socialization, externalization, combination, and internalization.
sources:
  - knowledge-management.md
createdAt: "2026-04-18T11:22:42.345Z"
updatedAt: "2026-04-18T11:22:42.345Z"
tags:
  - knowledge-management
  - models
  - knowledge-creation
  - organizational-learning
aliases:
  - seci-model-knowledge-spiral
  - SM(S
---

# SECI model (Knowledge Spiral)

The **SECI model**, also called the **Knowledge Spiral**, is a model proposed by **Ikujiro Nonaka** that describes knowledge creation as a spiraling interaction between [[tacit knowledge]] and [[explicit knowledge]]. “SECI” stands for **Socialisation, Externalisation, Combination, and Internalisation**. In this model, knowledge moves through a cycle in which implicit or tacit knowledge is extracted into explicit knowledge, and explicit knowledge is then re-internalised. ^[knowledge-management.md]

## Context

The SECI model is part of the broader field of [[knowledge management]], which focuses on organizational awareness, learning, collaboration, innovation, and the use and sharing of knowledge to support organizational goals. Within this field, one widely used way of distinguishing knowledge is the contrast between tacit knowledge, which is internalised and may not be consciously articulated, and explicit knowledge, which is consciously held and can be communicated more easily. ^[knowledge-management.md]

Early [[Knowledge management]] research suggested that organizations need to convert internalised tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge so that it can be shared, while also enabling individuals to internalise and make meaningful use of codified knowledge. The SECI model reflects this concern with movement between tacit and explicit forms of knowledge. ^[knowledge-management.md]

## The four modes

**Socialisation** refers to one of the four knowledge-conversion modes named in the SECI model. As part of the model as presented in the source, it is one stage in the spiraling interaction between [[Tacit and explicit knowledge]]. ^[knowledge-management.md]

**Externalisation** is the mode in which implicit or tacit knowledge is extracted so that it becomes explicit knowledge. This conversion is central to the SECI model’s account of how knowledge can move into a form that is more easily communicated and shared. ^[knowledge-management.md]

**Combination** is another of the four named modes in the SECI framework and forms part of the continuing cycle through which knowledge develops in a spiral. In the model, it belongs to the side of the process dealing with explicit knowledge. ^[knowledge-management.md]

**Internalisation** is the mode in which explicit knowledge is re-internalised. In the overall cycle, this describes how codified knowledge becomes incorporated again into implicit or tacit knowing. ^[knowledge-management.md]

## Why it is called a spiral

The model is described as a **spiraling interaction** rather than a simple one-time conversion. This emphasizes that knowledge creation is iterative: knowledge moves repeatedly between tacit and explicit dimensions rather than remaining fixed in one form. ^[knowledge-management.md]

## Relation to [[Knowledge management]] practice

The SECI model aligns with [[Knowledge management]] approaches that emphasize [[knowledge sharing]], [[knowledge creation]], and organizational learning processes. More broadly, [[Knowledge management]] research has stressed that successful knowledge creation, dissemination, and application depend strongly on people, cultural norms, and cognitive, social, and organisational learning processes. ^[knowledge-management.md]

The model also relates to strategic distinctions in [[Knowledge management]] between codification-oriented approaches and personalization-oriented approaches. Codification emphasizes storing and managing explicit knowledge in repositories, while personalization emphasizes direct sharing between individuals and is more closely associated with tacit knowledge flows. ^[knowledge-management.md]

## Critiques and later debate

Later research argued that the distinction between tacit knowledge and explicit knowledge may be an oversimplification, and that the idea of “explicit knowledge” is problematic because making knowledge explicit requires translating it into information, such as symbols outside the mind. The source also notes that Nonaka later revisited his earlier work with Georg von Krogh and Sven Voelpel in an effort to move the debate on knowledge conversion forward. ^[knowledge-management.md]

A related critique comes from the distinction between a **content perspective** and a **relational perspective** on knowledge. The content perspective treats knowledge as something that can be codified and stored relatively easily, whereas the relational perspective emphasizes the contextual and relational character of knowledge, which can make it difficult to share outside the setting in which it was developed. This debate is relevant to how the SECI model is interpreted in practice. ^[knowledge-management.md]

## Related concepts

Concepts closely related to the SECI model include [[knowledge management]], [[tacit knowledge]], [[explicit knowledge]], [[organizational learning]], [[knowledge sharing]], [[knowledge transfer]], [[community of practice]], and [[intellectual capital]]. ^[knowledge-management.md]

## Sources

- knowledge-management.md