Social Capital and Knowledge Contribution in Online User Communities: One-Way or Two-Way Relationship?

Yan, K, Leidner, D. Benbya, H. and Zou, W. 2019. Forthcoming. “Social Capital and Knowledge Contribution in Online User Communities: One-Way or Two-Way Relationship?” Decision Support Systems, 12(7), pp. 113-131

34 Pages Posted: 12 Aug 2020

See all articles by Jie (Kevin) Yan

Jie (Kevin) Yan

Dalton State College; Dalton State College

Dorothy Leidner

Baylor University; Lund University

Hind Benbya

Deakin University

Weifei Zou

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Date Written: 2019

Abstract

Firms have been increasingly relying on online user communities to access external, distant knowledge and expertise. Previous research on online user communities has largely investigated the influence of users’ social capital on their knowledge sharing behavior. In this study, we propose a two-way relationship between social capital and knowledge contribution of users in online user communities. To test our proposition, we collected and analyzed participation data of 1,766 users from the online user community of BMC, a global leader in innovative software solutions. Overall, our study shows evidence of significant bi-directional relationships between social capital (structural, cognitive and relational) and knowledge contribution, while the bi-directional relationships mainly exist among peripheral participants. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our study for the online user community literature as well as the broader context of online community.

Suggested Citation

Yan, Jie and Yan, Jie and Leidner, Dorothy and Benbya, Hind and Zou, Weifei, Social Capital and Knowledge Contribution in Online User Communities: One-Way or Two-Way Relationship? (2019). Yan, K, Leidner, D. Benbya, H. and Zou, W. 2019. Forthcoming. “Social Capital and Knowledge Contribution in Online User Communities: One-Way or Two-Way Relationship?” Decision Support Systems, 12(7), pp. 113-131, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3539087 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3539087

Jie Yan

Dalton State College ( email )

Dalton, GA 30720
United States

Dalton State College ( email )

Dalton, GA 30720
United States

Dorothy Leidner

Baylor University ( email )

School of Engineering & Computer Science
Waco, TX 76798
United States

Lund University ( email )

Box 117
Lund, SC Skane S221 00
Sweden

Hind Benbya (Contact Author)

Deakin University ( email )

221, Burwood Highway
Melbourne, VIC 3125
Australia

Weifei Zou

affiliation not provided to SSRN

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