Investigating the Relationships Between Cultural Embeddedness, Happiness, and Knowledge Management Practices in an Inter-Organizational Virtual Team

Abstract

In light of the considerable disparity in the thinking patterns between Western and Chinese societies, this study seeks to develop a better comprehension of the influences of traditional Chinese cultural elements on knowledge management (KM) practices within contemporary Taiwanese society. To this end, the research draws on the concepts of “guanxi” based on the embeddedness theory concept through the lens of employees’ happiness. A qualitative case study was conducted within a virtual team (in this case, Taiwanese Farmers’ Associations (FAs)), and data were collected from both observations and 36 interviewees. Based on the resulting analysis, the findings show that individuals’ knowledge-sharing behavior results from a complex interplay of a sense of well-being, guanxi, and the Chinese culture rooted within such organizations. The study provides a significant insight into the cultural implications of KM strategies and offers valuable advice for knowledge managers within the context of Taiwanese society.

Effectiveness of virtual team learning in entrepreneurship education: a survey study

“…In line with the launch of the action plan of education informatization 2.0 (MEPRC, 2018 ), Chinese educators and policymakers have started integrating information technology and team learning methods—virtual team learning in an online and blended learning environment. In the previous research, the concept of a virtual team has mainly been discussed in the context of an educational organization or workplace (Chumg & Huang, 2021 ; Elyousfi et al, 2021 ) and seldom in the field of formal education. Besides, the virtual team learning method is mainly adopted in the online learning environment (Ismailov & Laurier, 2021 ; Wen et al, 2015 ).…”

Promoting well-being through happiness at work: a systematic literature review and future research agenda

“…In addition to this, absorptive capacity and knowledge-sharing behavior which are the two core products of innovation and knowledge management, are also found to the significant positive outcomes of HAW (Chumg and Huang, 2021; Salas-Vallina et al ., 2020a, b, c). While absorptive capacity refers to the acquiring, retaining, and distributing the external knowledge, knowledge sharing behavior on the other side is the intention of individuals to exchange and disseminate their knowledge, skills, ideas, and expertise with the other members of the organization (Chumg and Huang, 2021). By promoting both these outcomes of HAW, organizations can encourage employees' innovative behavior, and, at the same time, can strengthen its knowledge management system to attain sustainable growth in this highly competitive era.…”

“…Compared to disengaged employees, they work very hard to put in extra effort to their work, mitigating the negative consequences such as stress and burnout, ultimately leading to the holistic growth of the organization (Bakker and Oerlemans, 2016). In addition to this, absorptive capacity and knowledge-sharing behavior which are the two core products of innovation and knowledge management, are also found to the significant positive outcomes of HAW (Chumg and Huang, 2021;Salas-Vallina et al, 2020a, b, c). While absorptive capacity refers to the acquiring, retaining, and distributing the external knowledge, knowledge sharing behavior on the other side is the intention of individuals to exchange and disseminate their knowledge, skills, ideas, and expertise with the other members of the organization (Chumg and Huang, 2021).…”

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“…The first of these pillars is the primary goal, fundamental and determining the actions of all partners. The second pillar is the shared IT/communication network as necessary infrastructure for the functioning of the organization (Chumg, Huang, 2021). The third pillar is the mutual trust among members of a virtual organization (Hacker et al, 2019, p.…”