Early retirements and the dynamics of social knowledge creation

A model of knowledge creation was tested by analyzing the effects of early retirements on social capital, conditions for exchange and combination and social knowledge. The qualitative data obtained from nurses and head nurses from six care units in three hospitals reveal how early retirements shaped various aspects of social capital and the conditions for social capital development. Indications of variations in social knowledge were also evident in much of the data. Further evidence suggests that other management decisions and circumstances compounded the effects of early retirements on the dynamics of social knowledge creation.