Exploring knowledge contribution from an OCB perspective

As participation in virtual community becomes popular, it is important to know how to encourage individuals to contribute actively and assist other members share their expertise. Through the lens of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), we explored the factors that facilitate voluntary knowledge sharing in a virtual community. We examined OCB in online gaming communities in which various behaviors can contribute to the community (the team) or to individuals (team members). Our aim was to gain insight into ways of creating an environment that facilitated voluntary sharing of knowledge. Our findings suggested that effective leader–member exchange relationships, the attractiveness of the group to individuals, and affection similarity were important in establishing a virtual environment within which voluntary contributions could be promoted effectively. In addition, our study suggested that better quality leader–member exchange relationships and positive affection toward the virtual team enhanced OCB.     

Exploring success factors of video game communities in hierarchical linear modeling: The perspectives of members and leaders

Video games are enjoying fast-growing popularity, becoming a major component of young people’s social lives and leisure activities. Many players share information and conduct social interactions in virtual communities (VC). The current study sought to examine the relationships between members and leaders in such video game communities using a number of variables to describe the member (i.e., knowledge sharing, usefulness, enjoyability, off-site interaction, satisfaction, loyalty, and intention to use) and the leader (i.e., leader involvement). Based on a sample of 2227 members and 41 leaders in 30 video game communities, the research demonstrated the use of a two-level hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) to examine the relationships of VC leaders and members, appropriately adjusted for a nested structure. The results indicated that leaders who engage in higher levels of involvement in VC are more likely to have members who agree with and respond to the community. Furthermore, member- and leader-level factors were significantly associated with member satisfaction: knowledge sharing, usefulness, and enjoyability explained within-VC variance while leader involvement explained between-VC variance. Finally, member satisfaction demonstrated positive effects on both member loyalty and intention to use. The study further discussed the implications of these findings, offering direction for future research.     

A study of Facebook Groups members’ knowledge sharing

There have been many studies focusing on individuals’ knowledge sharing behavior in the organizational setting. With the rapid prevalence of social networking sites, many people began to express their thoughts or share their knowledge via Facebook website. Facebook is an open environment which does not provide any immediate monetary benefits to its users. Its Groups members’ knowledge sharing behavior could be different from the ones in organizations. We proposed a research model to examine factors which promote the Facebook Groups users’ willingness to share knowledge. The factors in the study include extrinsic motivation, social and psychological forces, and social networking sharing culture. We used PLS to test our proposed hypotheses based on 271 responses collected through an online survey. Our results indicated that reputation would affect knowledge sharing attitude of Groups members and sense of self-worth would directly and indirectly (through subjective norm) affect the attitude. In addition, social networking sharing culture (fairness, identification, and openness) is the most significant factor, not only directly affecting knowledge sharing intention, but also indirectly influencing the sharing intention through subjective norm and knowledge sharing attitude.     

Fostering the determinants of knowledge sharing in professional virtual communities

Professional virtual communities (PVCs), which are formed on the Internet, are expected to serve the needs of members for communication, information, and knowledge sharing. The executives of organizations should consider PVCs as a new innovation or knowledge pool since members share knowledge. However, many PVCs have failed due to members’ low willingness to share knowledge with other members. Thus, there is a need to understand and foster the determinants of members’ knowledge sharing behavior in PVCs. This study develops an integrated model designed to investigate and explain the relationships between contextual factors, personal perceptions of knowledge sharing, knowledge sharing behavior, and community loyalty. Empirical data was collected from three PVCs and tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) to verify the fit of the hypothetical model. The results show that trust significantly influences knowledge sharing self-efficacy, perceived relative advantage and perceived compatibility, which in turn positively affect knowledge sharing behavior. Furthermore, the study finds that the norm of reciprocity does not significantly affect knowledge sharing behavior. The results of the study can be used to identify the motivation underlying individuals’ knowledge sharing behavior in PVCs. By investigating the impacts of contextual factors and personal perceptions on knowledge sharing behavior, the integrated model better explains behavior than other proposed models. This study might help executives of virtual communities and organizations to manage and promote these determinants of knowledge sharing to stimulate members’ willingness to share knowledge and enhance their virtual community loyalty. As only little empirical research has been conducted on the impact of knowledge sharing self-efficacy, perceived relative advantage, and perceived compatibility on the individual’s knowledge sharing behavior in PVCs, the empirical evidence reported here makes a valuable contribution in this highly important area.     

Why would online gamers share their innovation-conducive knowledge in the online game user community? Integrating individual motivations and social capital perspectives

The user community has been an important external source of a firm’s product or service innovation. Users’ innovation-conducive knowledge sharing enables the community to work as a vital source of innovation. But, traditional economic theories of innovation seem to provide few explanations about why such knowledge sharing takes place for free in the user community. Therefore, this study investigates what drives community users to freely share their innovation-conducive knowledge, using the theory of planned behavior. Based on an empirical analysis of the data from 1244 members of a South Korean online game user community, it reveals that intrinsic motivation, shared goals, and social trust are salient factors in promoting users’ innovation-conducive knowledge sharing. Extrinsic motivation and social tie, however, were found to affect such sharing adversely, contingent upon whether a user is an innovator or a non-innovator. The study illustrates how social capital, in addition to individual motivations, forms and influences users’ innovation-conducive knowledge sharing in the online gaming context.     

Understanding online knowledge sharing: An interpersonal relationship perspective

The unique features and capabilities of online learning are built on the ability to connect to a wider range of learning resources and peer learners that benefit individual learners, such as through discussion forums, collaborative learning, and community building. The success of online learning thus depends on the participation, engagement, and social interaction of peer learners, which leads to knowledge sharing. Thus, without frequent and persistent interaction, it is doubtful whether knowledge sharing can take place in online learning. This study argues that theories about the development and maintenance of social relationships provide a theoretical foundation for understanding the motivation to engage in online knowledge sharing behavior. An Online Knowledge Sharing Model (OKSM) is proposed and empirically tested among undergraduate students using an online learning environment. The model introduces two new constructs – Perceived Online Attachment Motivation (POAM) and Perceived Online Relationship Commitment (PORC), which together explained 71 percent of the variance observed in self-reported online knowledge sharing behavior. The findings provide some explanations for the motivation to share knowledge, and have several implications for the design of the features and capabilities of online learning environments.     

Individual characteristics influencing the sharing of knowledge on social networking services: online identity,self-efficacy,and knowledge sharing intentions

ABSTRACT

Social media have become an important place for individuals with similar interests to exchange opinions and share resources. Ubiquitous collaborative learning environments in SNS have great educational and organisational potential and offer a platform for sharing knowledge. Rising interest in personal factors in knowledge management research calls for a better understanding of how knowledge is shared in SNS-based collaborative learning. Grounded on the theories of planned behaviour and social identity, this study investigates individual characteristics that affect the sharing of knowledge in SNS learning communities. The study also examines whether intent to share knowledge mediates those personal characteristics and sharing of knowledge. Eighty individuals from five active Facebook groups participated in this study. The findings indicate that individual characteristics, such as online personal identity, web-specific self-efficacy, and knowledge-creation self-efficacy significantly predict sharing of knowledge. In addition, intent to share knowledge mediates between the sharing of knowledge and online identity, web-specific self-efficacy, or knowledge-creation self-efficacy. The results reveal a need for customised support and environmental design focusing on online personal identity, web-specific self-efficacy, knowledge-creation self-efficacy, and intent to share knowledge in a knowledge-sharing community on SNS. Implications for the SNS communities and suggestions for further research are discussed.     

What drives consumer knowledge sharing in online travel communities?: Personal attributes or e-service factors?

Consumer voluntary sharing of e-service knowledge in an online community is of great value to both business and consumers. This study develops and tests a research model integrating two personal attributes (consumer innovativeness and subjective knowledge) and two e-service factors (perceived ease of use and usefulness) in predicting consumer voluntary knowledge sharing in an online community. Data were collected using a web-based survey of 364 airline travelers recruited through an online travel community in China. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) technique was used to analyze the data. The results reveal that personal factors are stronger drivers of knowledge sharing than e-service factors. This study advances consumer knowledge sharing in online communities, and has implications for enhancing a firm’s e-service strategies.     

Why do you return the favor in online knowledge communities? A study of the motivations of reciprocity

Online knowledge community administrators are attempting to encourage their users to contribute knowledge in order to provide value to members and maintain sustainability. A large number of online knowledge communities fail mainly due to the reluctance of users to return the favor and share knowledge. Many studies on this topic have highlighted the importance of reciprocity for knowledge contribution which forms a virtuous feedback loop for the community sustainability. However, it is unclear how reciprocity is developed and what influences its development. Motivated by this, this study focuses on investigating the antecedents of knowledge receivers’ reciprocity in online knowledge communities. It formulates and tests a theoretical model to explain reciprocity behavior of community members based on equity theory and Social Identity explanation of De-individuation Effects (SIDE) model. Our proposed model is validated through a large-scale survey in an online forum for English learning. Results reveal that indebtedness and community norm not only are key antecedents of intention to reciprocate but are also positively related to each other. The perceived anonymity of the online knowledge community not only has a positive effect on intention to reciprocate, but also has an interactive effect with community norm on intention to reciprocate. Theoretical and practical implications of this study are discussed.     

Not all posts are treated equal: An empirical investigation of post replying behavior in an online travel community

The post replying behavior in online communities (OCs) has garnered little consideration, even though the feedback behavior represents the central social dynamic of OCs and greatly determines the vibrancy of OCs. To fill this gap, this study aims to identify major sharing post-related variables that explain the heterogeneity in the post replying behavior in knowledge sharing OCs. The research model is validated through a panel dataset assembled from an online travel community. The results reveal that sharing post length and vividness, contributors’ expertise and degree centrality, and members’ social interactions have significant associations with the number of replying posts.     

To give or to receive? Factors influencing members’ knowledge sharing and community promotion in professional virtual communities

Professional virtual communities (PVCs) bring together geographically dispersed, like-minded people to form a network for knowledge exchange. To promote knowledge sharing, it is important to know why individuals choose to give or to receive knowledge with other community members. We identified factors that were considered influential in increasing community knowledge transfer and examined their impact in PVCs. Data collected from 323 members of two communities were used in our structural equation modeling (SEM). The results suggested that norm of reciprocity, interpersonal trust, knowledge sharing self-efficacy, and perceived relative advantage were significant in affecting knowledge sharing behaviors in PVCs. The knowledge contributing and collecting behaviors were positively related to knowledge utilization. Furthermore, while the collecting behavior had a significant effect on community promotion, the influence of contributing behavior on community promotion was limited.     

Exploring and mitigating social loafing in online communities

The motivation to share members’ knowledge is critical to an online community’s survival and success. Previous research has established that knowledge sharing intentions are based on group cohesion. Several studies also suggested that social loafing behavior will seriously corrode group cohesion. Therefore, social loafing is a key obstacle to fostering online community development. Although substantial studies have been performed on the critical factors that affect social loafing in the learning group, those on online communities are still lacking. By integrating two perspectives, social capital and perceived risk, a richer understanding of social loafing behavior can be gained. In the research model, social ties and perceived risk have been driven by anonymity, offline activities, knowledge quality, and media richness. Social ties and perceived risk are hypothesized to affect social loafing in the online community, which, in turn, is hypothesized as negatively affecting group cohesion. Data collected from 323 online users in online communities provide support for the proposed model. The study shows that social loafing is a significant negative predictor of the users’ group cohesion. The study also shows that social ties and perceived risk are important components of social loafing. Anonymity, offline activities, knowledge quality, and media richness all have strong effects on social ties and perceived risk in the online community. Implications for theory and practice and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Knowledge sharing in online health communities: A social exchange theory perspective

Online health communities (OHC) are becoming valuable platforms for patients to communicate and find support. These communities are different from general online communities. The knowledge shared in an OHC can be categorized as either general (public) or specific (private), and each category is shared in vastly different ways. Using the social exchange theory, we propose a benefit vs. cost knowledge sharing model for OHCs. The benefits are mainly based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs, and the cost includes cognitive and executional costs. We use this benefit vs. cost model to examine how OHC members share general and specific knowledge. Data were collected from 323 users of two well-known OHCs in China and were analyzed using the structural equation model. The results demonstrate that three factors positively impact the sharing of both general and specific knowledge: a sense of self-worth, members’ perceived social support, and reputation enhancement. Another factor, face concern, has a negative influence on specific knowledge sharing and a positive influence on general knowledge sharing. Executional cost only negatively impacts general knowledge sharing, and cognitive cost only negatively impacts specific knowledge sharing. This study of OHCs reveals that personal benefits promote knowledge sharing and costs prohibit it. These impacts vary between general knowledge and specific knowledge sharing.     

The way we share and learn: An exploratory study of the self-regulatory mechanisms in the professional online learning community

Self-regulation involves a triadic interplay among personal beliefs, individual behavior, and environment that both proactively and reactively influences one’s adjustment of efforts, courses of action, and attainment of goals to reach the anticipated outcomes. In this study, we propose and validate a self-regulation model that explores the effects of social capital and social cognitive factors on knowledge-sharing behavior. The results demonstrate that members of an online knowledge communities regulate his or her internal motivation, external demands, interpersonal relationships, help-seeking strategies, as well as confidence of capability in utilizing social resources and performing knowledge sharing task. Through a stronger sense of community, emotional attachment and empathic concern about others’ needs, members develop a high level of professional competence to collaborate with others and adequate efficacious beliefs to emotionally and instrumentally help others. The implications to both research and practice are discussed to enhance the understanding and effectiveness of self-regulation in the realm of knowledge management.     

Internet aggression in online communities: a contemporary deterrence perspective

Internet users' activities are critical to the development and success of Web 2.0 systems, such as online communities. Within the community's participation, knowledge sharing, and communications, users may conduct aggressive behaviors that would have a negative impact on that online community. This study investigates factors that affect Chinese users' aggression intention in online communities. Research findings show that online aggression can be inhibited by internal deterrents of face saving and moral beliefs, which may be enhanced through implementation of consequences from an effective community policy and peer pressure among community members. Differences in the effects of the deterrence measures exist between younger and older users. This paper contributes theoretically and empirically to Web 2.0 research and has practical implications for virtual community management.     

Knowledge Sharing in Virtual Communities: A Study of Citizenship Behavior and Its Social-Relational Antecedents

A virtual community is a type of online structure that enables Internet users to communicate and collaborate. Users' knowledge contributions are critical to the viability and sustainability of virtual communities. This article studies virtual community members' knowledge sharing from the perspective of citizenship behavior defined as members' spontaneous contribution to the community without expectation of return or reciprocation. The social-relational antecedents of citizenship behavior are explored through an examination of how members' general attitude and desire for relationship building and maintaining, including attachment motivation, social support orientation, and disposition to trust influence their trusting beliefs and citizenship knowledge-sharing behavior. Hypotheses are developed and tested with survey data from Chinese and American users of virtual communities. In general, the results of data analyses support our research model. This article contributes empirically to virtual community research and has practical implications for virtual community development.     

“What’s coming next?” Epistemic curiosity and lurking behavior in online communities

Prior research has repeatedly found that lurkers, the passive members of online communities, dominate such communities in terms of membership. Yet lurking in online communities reflects a phenomenon largely neglected by contemporary information systems theory and research. This study starts by reviewing existing literature on lurking behavior in online communities and identifies an unexplored opportunity related to the nature and origins of lurkers’ behavior, the individual propensity to de-lurk, and the dynamic interplay between lurking and de-lurking behavior. A theoretical process-based framework linking epistemic curiosity to lurking and de-lurking behavior in online communities is presented. This framework links prior academic work on epistemic curiosity as personality trait and emotional–motivational state to lurkers’ contribution behavior in online communities. The article concludes by proposing that the psychology of curiosity in general holds great promise for research on online communities in information systems.     

Reciprocity norms and information-sharing behavior in online consumption communities: An empirical investigation of antecedents and moderators

This study seeks a better understanding of information-sharing behavior in online consumption communities by investigating both the antecedents and moderating mechanisms of such behavior. Using self-reported data collected over two periods, along with objective behavioral data, the authors show that a reciprocity norm functions as a proximal determinant of information-sharing behavior. This norm also channels the effects of social, hedonic, and utilitarian community values on sharing behavior. The results reveal that the conversion of reciprocity norms into information-sharing behavior depends on individual and contextual conditions. These significant insights reflect the integration of consumer resource allocation theory with a reciprocity framework to establish an explanatory platform for members’ information-sharing behavior in online communities. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

How Open is Open Source? – Software and Beyond

Traditionally the protection of intellectual property is regarded as a precondition for value capture. The rise of open source (OS) software and OS tangible products, so‐called open design, has challenged this understanding. Openness is often regarded as a dichotomous variable (open‐source vs. closed‐source) and it is assumed that online developer communities demand full opening of the product's source. In this paper we will explore openness as a gradual and multi‐dimensional concept. We carried out an Internet survey (N = 270) among participants of 20 open design communities in the domain of IT hardware and consumer electronics. We find that open design projects pursue complex strategies short of complete openness and that communities value openness of software more highly than openness of hardware. Our findings suggest that open design companies can successfully implement strategies of partial openness to safeguard value capture without alienating their developer community.