Empirical examination of knowledge sharing as communication in an academic setting

This study investigated the relationships between communication practices and Knowledge Sharing process (KS) under the positivist lens. The samples were 209 teaching and non-teaching personnel from a private Catholic academic institution in the Philippines. The respondents completed a survey questionnaire using De Nobile and McCormick's (2008) 66-item Organizational Communication Questionnaire and van den Hooff's & De Ridder's (2004) 10-item scales on Knowledge Sharing.Exploratory Factor Analysis was used to examine the underlying factor structure of a set of observable communication practices in the academe. This resulted to four factor loadings which led to the formulation of 4 hypotheses. Pearson correlation with two-tailed tests of significance was used. Multiple regression analyses identified communication factors that were predictors of KS. Based on the results of the factor analysis, four communication dimensions came out strongly and were labeled as Downward Supportive Communication, Upward Supportive Communication, Horizontal Supportive Communication, and Communication Load.

These results were further subjected to cross analysis, correlation and regression analyses which confirmed that the among the four communication dimensions, horizontal and upward supportive communications were statistically positively related to KS and were predictors of KS. The structural dimension of social capital which refers to the climate factors (Chay, 2004), relational dimension of trust and reciprocity and leader-member exchange theory explain the prevalence of supportive communication in the setting. The results suggest that upward, horizontal and downward supportive communication are the pervading communication dimensions present in the academe. An unexpected relationship was noted on Communication Load and KS results of the study. Issues of being “overload” proved not to be a concern among respondents of the study and was suspected to be due to impression management, communication capacity and proficiency and organizational citizenship of the personnel. Implications for strategic and leadership management and research were forwarded as recommendations.