Knowledge Creation: Individual and Organizational Perspectives

Abstract

A comprehensive model that delineates the interrelationships among ‘user involvement’, ‘knowledge cognition’, ‘organizational mechanisms’, and ‘knowledge creation’ is absent. This study aims to fill this void. Unlike previous research, this study examined the issues of effective knowledge management from two perspectives: individuals, i.e. user involvement and knowledge cognition, and organizations, i.e. organizational mechanisms. In our framework, we argued that the composite effect of ‘user involvement’, ‘knowledge cognition’, and ‘organizational mechanisms’ influences the result of knowledge creation. In order to test the feasibility of this framework, we conducted an empirical study. This study employed a survey instrument to collect data from 500 organizations in manufacturing, trade, transportation, service industries, and academic institutions. A total of 271 useable responses were analyzed. The major contributions of this research are to: (a) develop a knowledge management framework based on individual and organizational perspectives; and (b) identify the impact of user involvement, knowledge cognition, and organizational mechanisms on knowledge creation. The implications of the study are provided, and further research directions are proposed.