Review on knowledge sharing behavior studies: Theories and research approaches

Abstract

Objectives: There are still less empirical research that has been conducted regarding individual issues that shape behaviors, intentions, attitudes and beliefs in knowledge sharing. However, in order to proceed the study on examining the knowledge sharing behavior, it is important to first analyze the most suitable research approaches and theoretical framework that can be used in this study. Methods/Statistical Analysis: This paper investigates the research approaches used for examining knowledge sharing behavior by reviewing 118 papers on regarding this topic which were retrieved from five online databases which are IEEE, Science Direct, Emerald, ACM Digital Library and Web of Science. Findings: This paper concludes that survey method is the most suitable research method for examining the knowledge sharing behavior. Most of the study uses a theory to explain the each factor that they found. The theories that were mostly used in the previous research were Theory of Planned Behavior and Theory of Reasoned Action. Result shows that there were insufficient studies on knowledge sharing behavior in education compared to other domain. Previous researches were mostly focusing on undergraduate and postgraduate student and there were limited studies on postgraduate student as the main subject. Thus by realizing this gap, a study on knowledge sharing behavior among postgraduate students is needed to solve the knowledge sharing behavior barriers found in the university context.