Perception on knowledge-sharing activities among industrial technology students in a public higher education institution

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of undergraduate students in a public higher education institution on knowledge-sharing, their preferred mode of sharing knowledge and the barriers associated with it. Students enrolled in the bachelor's degree program of Industrial Technology in a public educational institution were used as respondents and were classified according to gender, academic year level and scholastic status. Results indicated that face-to-face communication or direct interaction is the most preferred mode of sharing knowledge among the respondents, while sending text messages or Short Message Service (SMS) is the least preferred mode. The respondents had a very favorable perception towards knowledge-sharing when taken as a whole and when grouped according to the different variables. No significant differences in the perception on knowledge-sharing among the different categories were observed. Gender, academic year level as well as scholastic status were not associated with the degree of perception on knowledge-sharing. The respondents believed that the lack of information to share is the factor that will most likely prevent them from engaging in knowledge sharing activities, whereas being ashamed to share opinions or ideas is least likely to be the reason of preventing them from sharing knowledge. © Maxwell Scientific Organization, 2013.