Factors affecting the students’ knowledge sharing through social media technologies: A structural equation modeling approach

Abstract

This study investigates factors affecting students’ knowledge sharing over social media platforms. An online survey was conducted on 1470 distance education students, enrolled in an online Master of Library and Information Science program in a public sector university, Islamabad, Pakistan. Using the theory of reasoned action and factors, namely, trust, facilitation conditions, perceived reciprocal benefits, and individual creativity, a comprehensive research model was developed. Following the positivist paradigm, a quantitative survey research design was employed to conduct this study. Using IBM-SPSS and AMOS (version 21.0), structural equation modeling was applied to analyze the data, testing hypotheses, and research model. The research findings disclosed that the students used different social media platforms for knowledge sharing. Subjective norms and trust positively influenced students’ knowledge sharing behaviour intention. Facilitation conditions and behaviour intention were found to be key factors in students’ knowledge sharing through social media. Among the factors, student behavioural intention was found to be the most influential factor. However, attitude, perceived reciprocal benefits, and individual creativity did not influence knowledge sharing. Overall, the research model measured significant students’ knowledge sharing over social media platforms. There is a dearth of literature about the factors influencing knowledge sharing over social media from the Pakistani perspective. This study addressed the hitherto under-researched issue and developed a theoretical framework by extending the theory of reasoned action for social media-driven knowledge sharing from the Pakistani distance education students’ perspective.