Patterns of dissemination: Examining and documenting practitioner knowledge sharing practices on blogs

Purpose: To empirically examine and document knowledge sharing patterns that practitioners employ in blog conversations about research and work experiences. Method: We conducted an empirical analysis of 235 blog posts from June 2014 to March 2016. We analyzed and coded each post for 14 unique variables including article type, topic, and citation style. We then analyzed the data using both descriptive and inferential statistics in order to reveal patterns in the data. Results: An overwhelming majority of the blog posts were written by practitioners for practitioners. Of the 235 blog posts, the most common topics were technology, professionalization, and communication strategies. Of the technology posts written, DITA was by far the most common technology topic. The most common article types were argumentative, process, and how-to articles. While practitioners rarely blog about research, when they do, they spend most of their time writing about results and discussion as opposed to introductions or methodology. Finally, our analysis revealed that bloggers made intentional visual design choices when sharing knowledge via blogs. Conclusion: Practitioners use distinct knowledge dissemination patterns in blog conversations that shape how research is presented to the technical communication community. Understanding these patterns is an important first step toward developing a shared language that will help bridge the gap in understanding between the academic and practitioner communities. Ultimately, blogs are a useful forum for studying practitioner conversations and developing broader understanding about what they value in their work and research.