Cultural determinants of research community participation

Informal and formal communities play important roles in organisations including in higher education institutions. These communities provide platforms for knowledge sharing and creation among participated members and in turn lead to research innovation. In order to increase participation in research community, higher education institutions need to address important cultural elements that support their knowledge activities. However, lack of studies examining cultural determinants of research community participation which might impact the role of community as the facilitator of organizational learning. Based on review of literature, this paper proposes top management support for knowledge sharing, openness and structure as the factors that influence research community participation. The identification of these factors are taking into account the needs of these cultural antecedents for the growth of research communities in the context of higher education institutions. Finally, the contributions and future research are discussed.