Understanding counterproductive knowledge behavior: antecedents and consequences of intra-organizational knowledge hiding

PurposeThis paper aims to explore antecedents and consequences of intra-organizational knowledge hiding.Design/methodology/approachA model was developed and tested with data collected from 691 knowledge workers from 15 North American credit unions.FindingsKnowledge hiding and knowledge sharing belong to unique yet possibly overlapping constructs. Individual employees believe that they engage in knowledge hiding to a lesser degree than their co-workers. The availability of knowledge management systems and knowledge policies has no impact on intra-organizational knowledge hiding. The existence of a positive organizational knowledge culture has a negative effect on intra-organizational knowledge hiding. In contrast, job insecurity motivates knowledge hiding. Employees may reciprocate negative knowledge behavior, and knowledge hiding promotes voluntary turnover.Practical implicationsManagers should realize the uniqueness of counterproductive knowledge behavior and develop proactive measures to reduce or eliminate it.Originality/valueCounterproductive knowledge behavior is dramatically under-represented in knowledge management research, and this study attempts to fill that void.

Understanding counterproductive knowledge behavior: antecedents and consequences of intra-organizational knowledge hiding Journal Articles