Common knowledge

Not to be confused with Common sense or General knowledge.
For other uses, see Common knowledge (disambiguation).

Common knowledge is knowledge that is publicly known by everyone or nearly everyone, usually with reference to the community in which the knowledge is referenced.[1] Common knowledge can be about a broad range of subjects, such as science, literature, history, or entertainment.[1] Since individuals often have different knowledge bases, common knowledge can vary and it may sometimes take large-scale studies to know for certain what is common knowledge amongst large groups of people.[2] Often, common knowledge does not need to be cited.[3] Common knowledge is distinct from general knowledge.

In broader terms, common knowledge is used to refer to information that an agent[clarification needed] would accept as valid, such as information that multiple users may know.[2] Assigning something the label of common knowledge requires certain considerations about the involved community, group, society and/or individuals, the time period, and the location.[1]

  1. ^ a b c Halpern, Joseph Y.; Moses, Yoram (1990-07-01). "Knowledge and common knowledge in a distributed environment". Journal of the ACM. 37 (3): 549–587. arXiv:cs/0006009. doi:10.1145/79147.79161. ISSN 0004-5411. S2CID 52151232.
  2. ^ a b Geanakoplos, John (1992-11-01). "Common Knowledge". Journal of Economic Perspectives. 6 (4): 53–82. doi:10.1257/jep.6.4.53. ISSN 0895-3309.
  3. ^ Shi, Ling (2011). "Common Knowledge, Learning, and Citation Practices in University Writing". Research in the Teaching of English. 45 (3): 308–334. doi:10.58680/rte201113468. ISSN 0034-527X. JSTOR 40997768. S2CID 140445118.