Knowledge sharing idiosyncrasies of university students in Ghana

Abstract

This study explored the factors affecting knowledge sharing behaviour of students in a higher institution of learning. Using a model derived from the Social Cognitive Theory and the Theory of Reason Action, six hypotheses were tested from a cross-sectional data collected from 371 undergraduate students on a 4-year degree programme in the University of Ghana. Five out of the six hypotheses were supported. The results showed that the knowledge sharing behaviour (KSB) of the students was significantly related to five of the human and environmental factors (F=639.9, df=5, 290, p<0.05) with a co- efficient of variation of R2=0.917 (91.7%). The knowledge sharing behavior of the students was, however, not significantly dependent on their personal characteristics. The study makes a case for increased attention in understanding the human and environmental factors of knowledge sharing since knowledge sharing is largely a people activity shaped by culture. © IFIP International Federation for Information Processing 2014.