Knowledge reuse through electronic repositories: A study in the context of customer service support

Abstract

Organizations are implementing electronic repository systems to facilitate knowledge reuse but with varying degrees of success. There is a lack of understanding of how individual and technical factors interact in determining knowledge reuse and the performance benefits that could be derived from electronic knowledge repositories. We proposed a model to explain the impact of user motivation and the user's perception of the value of the available knowledge repository on knowledge reuse and the individual's performance benefits through using the system. Through a field survey, we found that perceived knowledge repository capability and intrinsic motivation positively affected knowledge reuse, which in turn impacted the benefits derived from using the system. We also found that perceived knowledge repository capability moderated the relationship between extrinsic reward and knowledge reuse. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.