Supporting Multiple Points of View in Knowledge Organization

Knowledge organization schemes typically assume a single point of view and a consequent single scheme of classification and a single set of categories with "standard" definitions and conceptual relationships. The real world, on the other hand, is full of multiple points of view that result in different conceptualizations and categories which are incompatible with each other. This article attempts to formulate the present lack of support for multiple points of view as a formal problem in ontological modeling and proposes a solution that enables multiple, incompatible views of the world to co-exist in a single KO scheme. Although a particular view in such a KO scheme is likely to be inconsistent with other views within the same scheme, the solution guarantees that each view presents a consistent conceptualization of the world or domain being organized. The proposed solution is expected to be of significant practical value in supporting multiple conceptualizations resulting from cultural, historical, philosophical, linguistic and political differences. This article also examines the gaps in current standards such as OWL and proposes an extension to OWL to enable multiple points of view.