Role Domains of Knowledge Brokering: A Model for the Health Care Setting

Knowledge brokering is a strategy to support collaborations and partnerships within and across clinical, research, and policy worlds to improve the generation and use of research knowledge. Knowledge brokers function in multiple roles to facilitate the use of evidence by leveraging the power of these partnerships. The application of theory can provide clarity in understanding the processes, influences, expected mechanisms of action, and desired outcomes of knowledge brokering. Viewing knowledge brokering from the perspective of its role domains can provide a means of organizing these elements to advance our understanding of knowledge brokering. The objectives of this special interest article are (1) to describe the context for knowledge brokering in health care, (2) to provide an overview of knowledge translation theories applied to knowledge brokering, and (3) to propose a model outlining the role domains assumed in knowledge brokering. The Role Model for Knowledge Brokering is composed of 5 role domains, including information manager, linking agent, capacity builder, facilitator, and evaluator. We provide examples from the literature and our real-world experience to demonstrate the application of the model. This model can be used to inform the practice of knowledge brokering as well as professional development and evaluation strategies. In addition, it may be used to inform theory-driven research examining the effectiveness of knowledge brokering on knowledge generation and translation outcomes in the health care field, as well as on patient health outcomes.Video Abstract is available for more insights from the authors (see Supplemental Digital Content 1, http://links.lww.com/JNPT/A126).