The uses of ‘contrived’ knowledge elicitation techniques

Abstract: Despite a reappraisal of the view that knowledge acquisition (KA) forms a major bottleneck in the development of knowledge‐based systems, there is still room for considerable improvement both in the efficiency of the development process and the quality of the final product. A set of techniques which is at present under‐used in KA is the group of so‐called ‘contrived’ techniques, namely repertory grids, sorting and laddering. These techniques have proved useful in their areas of origin, where they have been used to elicit knowledge that is not readily apparent using more traditional techniques, such as self reports and interviews. The advantages both of the individual contrived knowledge elicitation techniques and of the synergies between them ensure that they can make a substantial contribution to knowledge engineering practice.