Do organizational factors predict knowledge sharing and research productivity of university faculty members?: A mediation model

Purpose The importance of organizational factors (OFs) cannot be denied in knowledge creation and sharing phenomena. However, there are still some neglected OFs that need exploration with knowledge sharing (KS) and research productivity (RP). The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of organizational factors (support, rewards, spirituality and workload) on knowledge sharing and research productivity, as well as the meditating effect of knowledge sharing among the relationships between OFs and RP. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative survey method has been opted for conducting this study and an adapted questionnaire was used for gathering data. Faculty members from the top three-ranked universities in Lahore, Pakistan, were the population of the study. The partial least square structural equation modeling based analysis was performed to test the proposed hypothesis. Findings Results represent a significant direct positive effect of organizational factors (support, rewards, spirituality and workload) on knowledge sharing, while only one organizational factor (workload) performed as a predictor of research productivity. Whereas organizational support, rewards and spirituality have no significant effect on research productivity. Moreover, knowledge does not have any type of mediating effect among the relationships between organizational factors and research productivity. Originality/value This is the first ever study, according to the best of the researcher’s knowledge, that has tested the mediating role of knowledge sharing among the relationships of OFs and RP as well as the majority of the selected OFs are not empirically tested earlier. Hence, this study fills the literature gap and provides insight about the local Pakistani context of the phenomenon. Further, the study is first-hand and original in context.