Journal ArticleDOI
"It is what one does": why people participate and help others in electronic communities of practice
Molly Wasko,Samer Faraj +1 more
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TLDR
Support for the public good perspective is provided by providing results from a survey examining why people participate and share knowledge in three electronic communities of practice, which indicate that people participate primarily out of community interest, generalized reciprocity and pro-social behavior.Abstract:
Advances in information and communication technologies have fundamentally heightened organizational interest in knowledge as a critical strategic resource. However, organizations are finding that members are often reluctant to exchange knowledge with others in the organization. This paper examines why. We review current knowledge management practices and find that organizations are treating knowledge as a private good, owned either by the organization or by organization members. We propose that knowledge can also be considered a public good, owned and maintained by a community. When knowledge is considered a public good, knowledge exchange is motivated by moral obligation and community interest rather than by narrow self-interest. We provide support for the public good perspective by providing results from a survey examining why people participate and share knowledge in three electronic communities of practice. The results indicate that people participate primarily out of community interest, generalized reciprocity and pro-social behavior.read more
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Why should i share? examining social capital and knowledge contribution in electronic networks of practice
Molly Wasko,Samer Faraj +1 more
TL;DR: This study empirically test a model of knowledge contribution and finds that people contribute their knowledge when they perceive that it enhances their professional reputations, when they have the experience to share, and when they are structurally embedded in the network.
Journal ArticleDOI
Behavioral intention formation in knowledge sharing: examining the roles of extrinsic motivators, social-psychological factors, and organizational climate
TL;DR: It is found that anticipated reciprocal relationships affect individuals' attitudes toward knowledge sharing while both sense of self-worth and organizational climate affect subjective norms, and anticipated extrinsic rewards exert a negative effect on individuals' knowledge-sharing attitudes.
Journal ArticleDOI
Contributing knowledge to electronic knowledge repositories: an empirical investigation
TL;DR: It can be seen that extrinsic benefits (reciprocity and organizational reward) impact EKR usage contingent on particular contextual factors whereas the effects of intrinsic benefits (knowledge self-efficacy and enjoyment in helping others) on E KR usage are not moderated by contextual factors.
Journal ArticleDOI
Knowledge sharing: A review and directions for future research
Sheng Wang,Raymond A. Noe +1 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed a framework for understanding knowledge sharing research and identified five areas of emphasis of knowledge sharing: organizational context, interpersonal and team characteristics, cultural characteristics, individual characteristics, and motivational factors.
Journal ArticleDOI
Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy
TL;DR: Polanyi is at pains to expunge what he believes to be the false notion contained in the contemporary view of science which treats it as an object and basically impersonal discipline.
References
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Social Capital, Intellectual Capital, and the Organizational Advantage
Janine Nahapiet,Sumantra Ghoshal +1 more
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a model that incorporates this overall argument in the form of a series of hypothesized relationships between different dimensions of social capital and the main mechanisms and proces.
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors studied the role of large and small firms in a growing economy and found that large firms are more likely to acquire and merge smaller firms in order to increase their size.
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