Changing workforce demographics, combined with a gap in knowledge and skills between older and younger generations, threatens small business viability. The presence of four generations in the workforce, where 1 in 5 employees are 55 years and older, presents an unprecedented challenge for small business leaders planning for succession with a multigenerational workforce. The purpose of this case study was to explore the effect of Baby Boomers' presence on small business leaders' ability to retain and transfer knowledge to successive generations. Using snowball and purposeful sampling techniques, 36 small business leaders in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area participated. The conceptual framework included the theories of groupthink, narrative paradigm, collaboration, stakeholder, and the swift theory of trust. Data collection occurred using e-mail to solicit study participants to provide their experiences concerning generational succession via a Web-based, electronic questionnaire. Data analysis entailed using a modified van Kaam method to identify 2 main themes for small business leaders to consider: (a) generational differences reflect small business leaders' challenges and (b) multigenerational succession affects the bottom line. Member checking, transcription review of questionnaire responses, and triangulation of data with existing theories strengthened the validity of study findings and themes. Study recommendations offered strategies for managing knowledge supportive of planned generational succession. This study's findings may contribute to social change by offering small business leaders strategies to facilitate a collaborative, knowledge management culture that may mitigate the effects of changing workforce demographics on small business viability.

<p>Computer errors are a constant problem for software providers. To completely avoid bugs has proven very difficult even though computer software goes through rigorous testing before released. One of the challenges for developers is recreating errors that end-users experience. User-submitted error reports can often be of help for developers to localize and fix bugs. However, the reports often vary in quality depending on the user's experience and the effort they put into writing the report. Instead of relying on manual error reports, some software providers have equipped their software with automated error reporting functionality. These programs are set to collect important information about the computer and the software in the event of a crash. There are pros and cons with both automated and manual error reporting.</p><p>The research that has previously been done in the field of error reporting has mostly focused on the situation where private persons are senders and corporations are receivers. This report addresses the setting where both parties are corporations, which brings several new aspects to the problem. The five main topics this report focuses on are: customer attitude, which data to send, privacy, user interaction and feedback. A study has been conducted at the ERP system provider IFS in Sweden where interviews with employees and customers have been performed. Interviewees in the customer companies have been primarily ERP and application managers. The results of the study show that companies are less concerned than what the literature suggests even though the attitudes differ some depending on line of business. Conclusions are that a high degree of configurability of what is sent in the error reports and the level of user interaction is needed for companies to accept automated error reporting.</p> / <p>Buggar är ett ständigt problem för mjukvarutillverkare. Att helt undvika dessa har visat sig vara mycket svårt trots rigorösa tester innan ny mjukvara släpps. En av utmaningarna för utvecklare är att återskapa felen som uppstår hos användarna. Felrapporter inskickade av användare kan ofta vara till hjälp för utvecklare när de ska lokalisera och åtgärda fel. Men rapporterna kan variera i kvalitet beroende på användarnas erfarenhet och tiden de lägger på att skriva rapporten. Istället för att förlita sig på manuella felrapporter har vissa mjukvarutillverkare utrustat sin programvara med funktionalitet för automatiska felrapporter. Dessa program ska samla in viktig information om datorn och programvaran i händelse av att en krasch uppstår.</p><p>Viss forskning har skett inom området automatiserad felrapportering men fokus har då legat på situationen då privatpersoner är avsändare och företag är mottagare. Denna rapport behandlar läget då båda parter är företag, vilket tillför flera nya aspekter till problemet. De fem huvudfrågorna som den här rapporten fokuserar på är: kunders attityd, vilken data ska skickas, integritet, användarinteraktion och feedback. En studie har utförts hos affärssystemleverantören IFS i Sverige, där intervjuer med anställda och kunder har genomförts. De intervjuade hos kundföretagen har huvudsakligen varit ERP- och applikationsansvariga. Resultaten av studien visar att företagen är mindre oroade än vad litteraturen indikerar även om attityderna skiljer sig något i olika branscher. Slutsatserna är att en hög grad av konfigurerbarhet behövs när det gäller vad som skickas i felrapporter samt vilken grad av interaktion med användaren som behövs. Detta för att kundföretagen ska acceptera automatisk felrapportering.</p>

<p>Det blir allt vanligare att människor byter arbetsgivare flera gånger under sitt yrkesverksamma liv och den gamla synen på anställningen som ett livslångt åtagande håller på att försvinna. Organisationer knyter till sig temporära medarbetare, bland annat till sina olika projekt, för att dessa ska tillföra sådan kompetens som inte finns i den ordinarie organisationen. Detta syns tydligt i statistiken från SCB som visar att andelen temporärt anställda ökar i Sverige och nu är nästan 16 % av arbetskraften.</p><p>Uppsatsen behandlar lärandeprocesser i organisationer med höga E/A-tal, det vill säga organisationer där andelen temporärt anställda överstiger andelen tillsvidareanställda medarbetare. Den inriktar sig på lärandet i och mellan projekt, samt hur huvudorganisationen tar del av lärandet i projekten, när individerna med specialkompetens bara är temporärt anställda.</p><p>Respondentorganisationernas syn på kunskap stannar vid individuell kompetens. De har som strategi att till varje nytt projekt anställa personer med rätt kompetens temporärt. När projektet är avslutat, slutar även de som är anställda för projektet. Om organisationen behöver personer med samma kompetens för andra projekt, återanställs personerna temporärt för att arbeta i dem.</p><p>Studien visar att de undersökta organisationerna har en fungerande lärprocess trots att de inte medvetet strävar efter detta. Inom projekten sker hela tiden ett kunskapsutbyte mellan teammedlemmarna, och mycket utav denna kunskap sprids inom organisationen genom småprat och formella möten. En viktig kunskapskälla är de chefer som fungerar som länk mellan huvudorganisationen och projektgrupperna.</p> / <p>It is getting increasingly common for people to change employer several times during their professional life. The old way to look at employment as a one single lifelong commitment is declining. Organisations are now using more temporary employees, among other things for their different projects, with the intention that these should provide complementary competence to the organisation. This is clearly shown in the statistics from SCB, which illustrates that the share of temporary employees in Sweden increases and at the present represents almost 16 % of the labour force.</p><p>This thesis studies learning processes in organisations with a high E/E-number, which stand for organisations where the share of temporary employees exceeds the share of regular employees. The thesis focus on learning within and between projects, as well as how the main organisation takes part of the learning in the projects, when the individuals with special competence are only temporary employed.</p><p>The respondent organisations view on knowledge stop at individual competence. Their strategy is to employ people with the right competences temporary to each new project, so when the project is closed, the people and the competence leave. If the organisation requires people with the same competence again for other projects, they are temporary re-employed.</p><p>The study shows that the organisations examined do have a functional learning process, although they do not consciously strive for this. Within the projects there is a constant knowledge exchange between the team members, and a lot of this knowledge is spread through out the organisation by small talk and formal meetings. An important source of knowledge is the supervisors which function as a link between the main organisation and the project teams.</p>

Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to, through a case study on a consumer electronics retailer in Jönköping, provide an empirical analysis of the link between the use of Facebook and social capital within the workplace. Background: The existing research on how employees’ Facebook usage affects social capital in the work place is far from extensive. Moreover, previous research focuses on large international organizations with their own internal social network site, and how this usage affects the organization’s social capital as an entity. Therefore, the authors of this thesis identified a need to examine only a single unit’s social capital within an organization and its link to the employees’ Facebook usage. Method: In order to answer the purpose of this thesis, a case study was performed on a consumer electronics retailer in Jönköping, Sweden. A mixed method, sequential explanatory design was applied in this thesis by; quantitative data collection in the form of questionnaires and then qualitative data collection in the form of semi-structured interviews. The questionnaires provided an overall insight to the situation at Electronicum, but also a guideline on where to focus when collecting the qualitative data. Eight employees were interviewed. Conclusion: The results indicate that Facebook affected the social capital mainly through its ability to quickly spread information and attitudes, but also to a large extent by its ability to extend social interaction, both offline and online. Trust was affected through Facebook’s ability to create bridging and bonding activities between employees. Moreover, the social capital components of shared norms and citizenship were influenced by Facebook. However, the most distinct link was between Facebook and knowledge sharing. There was a link between the use of Facebook and the increase in off-work activities which indirectly influenced the social capital at the work premises. / Syfte: Syftet med den här uppsatsen är att genom en fallstudie på en elektronikkedjas butik i Jönköping, beskriva länken mellan användning av Facebook och det sociala kapitalet på arbetsplatsen. Bakgrund: Den forskning som gjorts på effekterna av Facebookanvändning på arbetsplatsers sociala kapital är långt ifrån omfattande. Tidigare forskning har fokuserat på stora internationella organisationer med interna sociala nätverk websidor, och hur de  anställdas användning av dessa har påverkat organisationen som helhet. Härmed identifierade författarna ett behov av att undersöka hur anställdas Facebookanvändning påverkar socialt kapital hos en enhet inom en sådan organisation. Metod: För att kunna uppfylla syftet med den här uppsatsen gjordes en fallstudie på en elektronikkedjas butik i Jönköping, Sverige. En blandad förklarande sekventiell metod design användes genom kvantitativ datainsamling i form av enkäter och sedan kvalitativ data insamling i form av semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Enkäterna fungerade som en generell översikt av situationen på Electronicum men även som en riktlinje var fokus skulle placeras under den kvalitativa data insamlingen. Åtta anställda från butiken intervjuades. Slutsats: Resultaten visar att Facebook påverkade det sociala kapitalet huvudsakligen genom sin förmåga att snabbt sprida information och attityder och även till stor del genom Facebooks förmåga att utöka kontakten mellan anställda, offline som online. Facebook har en inverkan på en arbetsplats tillit genom dess förmåga att skapa överbryggande och sammanbindande aktiviteter. Även det sociala kapitalets komponenter ”delade normer” och anställdas känsla av ”medborgarskap” påverkades av Facebook. Länken mellan kunskapsutbyte och Facebook var dock tydligast. Det fanns en länk mellan Facebook användande och offline umgänge utanför jobbet vilket indirekt hade ett inflytande på arbetsplatsens sociala kapital.

Aquest treball de recerca se centra en un dels processos més rellevants de les persones: l’intercanvi de coneixements (IC). El coneixement pot ser explícit o tàcit. L’explícit es pot codificar, estructurar i emmagatzemar de manera que pugui estar disponible. El coneixement tàcit, conegut també com a tacit knowing, és l’acció de conèixer que no es pot codificar ni estructurar, sinó que depèn de les experiències, el criteri i els valors de la persona. Les xarxes socials informals de les organitzacions esdevenen un mitjà pel qual es pot facilitar la transmissió del tacit knowing, de manera que mitjançant l’anàlisi de xarxes socials (social network analysis, SNA) es poden entendre i analitzar les relacions entre les persones, més enllà de les estructures formals i jeràrquiques. Aquesta situació és rellevant perquè l’alta direcció potenciï, i no cerqui d’estructurar o de controlar, aquestes xarxes socials i amb una gestió adequada incentivi que el coneixement flueixi a través d’elles. Es plantegen els objectius següents: 1) establir l’impacte de la complexitat de tasques en la intensitat de la interacció de xarxes socials en una organització; 2) establir l’impacte de la complexitat de tasques en el procés d’intercanvi de coneixement, i 3) verificar si hi ha alguna relació entre la intensitat de la interacció de les xarxes socials en el procés d’intercanvi de coneixement (IC). En la recerca, s’ha administrat una enquesta a tres organitzacions peruanes intensives en coneixement. Es planteja que, com més complexes siguin les tasques, la propensió de la persona a intercanviar coneixements ha de ser més gran. Els criteris de classificació de la complexitat es basen en la multiplicitat de resultats, esquemes de solució, conflictes i incertesa, i s’ha pres la qualificació d’experts de les tres organitzacions, els quals indiquen en els individus qualificats el percentatge de temps que dediquen per realitzar cada tipus de tasca en la seva rutina normal. La intensitat de la interacció de xarxes i la propensió a l’IC s’obtenen de les enquestes. De l’anàlisi efectuada, s’observa una relació directa entre la complexitat de tasques i la intensitat en la interacció de la xarxa social de coneixement, com també entre la complexitat i la propensió a intercanviar coneixement. Així mateix, s’ha trobat una relació directa entre les persones que tenen un grau més alt d’interacció en la xarxa social de coneixement i la seva propensió a l’intercanvi de coneixements. Les contribucions principals d’aquesta recerca són aquestes: 1) en l’aspecte acadèmic, la metodologia plantejada quan es treballa amb la qualificació de la persona que coneix millor la naturalesa del treball; 2) en l’aspecte pràctic, la sistematització que es pot obtenir per identificar les persones que tenen més propensió a intercanviar coneixements per potenciar-los dins de l’organització. / El presente trabajo de investigación enfoca uno de los procesos más relevantes de las personas, el Intercambio de Conocimientos (IC). El conocimiento puede ser explícito o tácito. El explícito se puede codificar, estructurar y almacenar de manera que pueda estar disponible. El conocimiento tácito, o también conocido como Tacit Knowing, es la acción de conocer que no se puede codificar ni estructurar; este depende de las experiencias, el criterio y los valores de la persona. Las redes sociales informales en las organizaciones se convierten en un medio por el cual se puede facilitar la transmisión del Tacit Knowing, por lo que mediante el análisis de redes sociales (Social Network Analysis (SNA)) se puede entender y analizar las relaciones entre las personas más allá de las estructuras formales y jerárquicas. Esta situación es relevante para que la alta gerencia potencie, y no trate de estructurar o controlar, estas redes sociales y con una adecuada gestión que incentive que el conocimiento fluya a través de ellas. Se plantean los siguientes objetivos: 1) establecer el Impacto de la Complejidad de Tareas en la intensidad de la interacción de Redes Sociales en una organización, 2) establecer el Impacto de la Complejidad de Tareas en el proceso de Intercambio de Conocimiento y 3) verificar si existe alguna relación entre la intensidad de la interacción de las redes sociales en el proceso de Intercambio de Conocimiento (IC). En la investigación se ha aplicado una encuesta a tres organizaciones peruanas intensivas en conocimiento. Se plantea que a mayor complejidad de tareas, la propensión que debe de tener la persona al intercambio de conocimientos debe ser mayor. Los criterios de clasificación para la complejidad se basan en la multiplicidad de resultados, esquemas de solución, conflictos e incertidumbre y se ha tomado la calificación de expertos de las tres organizaciones, quienes indican en los individuos calificados el porcentaje de tiempo de cada tipo de tareas realizadas en su rutina normal. La intensidad de la interacción de redes y la propensión al IC se obtienen de las encuestas. Del análisis efectuado, se observa una relación directa entre la complejidad de tareas y la intensidad en la interacción de la red social de conocimiento, así como entre la complejidad y la propensión a intercambiar conocimiento. Asimismo, se ha encontrado una relación directa entre las personas que tienen un mayor grado interacción en la red social de conocimiento y su propensión al intercambio de conocimientos. Las principales contribuciones de la presente investigación son las siguientes: 1) en el aspecto académico está la metodología planteada cuando se trabaja con la calificación de la persona que mejor conoce la naturaleza del trabajo; 2) en el aspecto práctico está en la sistematización que se puede obtener para identificar a las personas que tienen una mayor propensión a intercambiar conocimiento para potenciarlos dentro de la organización. / The research addresses one of the most important processes of people, the Knowledge Sharing (KS). Knowledge can be explicit or tacit. The explicit can be structured and stored in a manner that may be available. Tacit knowledge, or also known as Tacit Knowing, is action learning that can not be encoded or structure, this depends on the experience, judgment and values of the person. Informal social networks in organizations become a means to facilitate the transmission of Tacit Knowing, so by analyzing social networks (Social Network Analysis (SNA)) can be understood and analyzed the relationships between people beyond formal and hierarchical structures. This situation is relevant to senior management in order to enhance, rather than try to structure or control, these social networks. An appropriate management should incentive that knowledge flows through them. The research objectives are: 1) establish the Impact of Task Complexity in the intensity of the interaction of social networks in an organization, 2) set the Impact of Task Complexity in the process of knowledge sharing and 3) verify if there is any relationship between the intensity of the interaction of social networks in the process of Knowledge Sharing (KS). A survey has been applied to three peruvian knowledge intensive organizations. It argues that a more complex task, the propensity that the person must have knowledge sharing should be higher. The classification criteria for complexity based on the multiplicity of outcomes, settlement schemes, conflict and uncertainty and has taken the qualification of experts from the three organizations, who qualified individuals listed in the percentage of time each type of task made in their normal routine. The intensity of the interaction of networks and the propensity to KS are obtained from surveys. The analysis conducted, there is a direct relation between task complexity and intensity in the interaction of the social network of knowledge and between complexity and propensity to share knowledge. Also found a direct relationship between people with greater social interaction network of knowledge and their propensity to knowledge sharing. The main contributions of this research are: 1) academically the proposed methodology when working with the qualification of the person who best knows the nature of work, 2) on the practical aspect is that the systematization can get to identify people who have a greater propensity to share knowledge to empower them within the organization.

<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>The purpose of this thesis is to, through a case study on a consumer electronics retailer in Jönköping, provide an empirical analysis of the link between the use of Facebook and social capital within the workplace.</p><p><strong>Background: </strong>The existing research on how employees’ Facebook usage affects social capital in the work place is far from extensive. Moreover, previous research focuses on large international organizations with their own internal social network site, and how this usage affects the organization’s social capital as an entity. Therefore, the authors of this thesis identified a need to examine only a single unit’s social capital within an organization and its link to the employees’ Facebook usage.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>In order to answer the purpose of this thesis, a case study was performed on a consumer electronics retailer in Jönköping, Sweden. A mixed method, sequential explanatory design was applied in this thesis by; quantitative data collection in the form of questionnaires and then qualitative data collection in the form of semi-structured interviews. The questionnaires provided an overall insight to the situation at Electronicum, but also a guideline on where to focus when collecting the qualitative data. Eight employees were interviewed.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The results indicate that Facebook affected the social capital mainly through its ability to quickly spread information and attitudes, but also to a large extent by its ability to extend social interaction, both offline and online. Trust was affected through Facebook’s ability to create bridging and bonding activities between employees. Moreover, the social capital components of shared norms and citizenship were influenced by Facebook. However, the most distinct link was between Facebook and knowledge sharing. There was a link between the use of Facebook and the increase in off-work activities which indirectly influenced the social capital at the work premises.</p> / <p><strong>Syfte:</strong> Syftet med den här uppsatsen är att genom en fallstudie på en elektronikkedjas butik i Jönköping, beskriva länken mellan användning av Facebook och det sociala kapitalet på arbetsplatsen. <strong></strong></p><p><strong>Bakgrund:</strong> Den forskning som gjorts på effekterna av Facebookanvändning på arbetsplatsers sociala kapital är långt ifrån omfattande. Tidigare forskning har fokuserat på stora internationella organisationer med interna sociala nätverk websidor, och hur de  anställdas användning av dessa har påverkat organisationen som helhet. Härmed identifierade författarna ett behov av att undersöka hur anställdas Facebookanvändning påverkar socialt kapital hos en enhet inom en sådan organisation.</p><p><strong>Metod:</strong> För att kunna uppfylla syftet med den här uppsatsen gjordes en fallstudie på en elektronikkedjas butik i Jönköping, Sverige. En blandad förklarande sekventiell metod design användes genom kvantitativ datainsamling i form av enkäter och sedan kvalitativ data insamling i form av semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Enkäterna fungerade som en generell översikt av situationen på Electronicum men även som en riktlinje var fokus skulle placeras under den kvalitativa data insamlingen. Åtta anställda från butiken intervjuades.</p><p><strong>Slutsats: </strong>Resultaten visar att Facebook påverkade det sociala kapitalet huvudsakligen genom sin förmåga att snabbt sprida information och attityder och även till stor del genom Facebooks förmåga att utöka kontakten mellan anställda, offline som online. Facebook har en inverkan på en arbetsplats tillit genom dess förmåga att skapa överbryggande och sammanbindande aktiviteter. Även det sociala kapitalets komponenter ”delade normer” och anställdas känsla av ”medborgarskap” påverkades av Facebook. Länken mellan kunskapsutbyte och Facebook var dock tydligast. Det fanns en länk mellan Facebook användande och offline umgänge utanför jobbet vilket indirekt hade ett inflytande på arbetsplatsens sociala kapital.</p>

現今競爭日趨激烈，企業需與外界利害關係人緊密結合，以形成知識充分交流的關係網絡，且若個人的知識與關係深植入組織中，將可累積企業的智慧資本，並增加競爭優勢。既然往來關係、組織內之知識分享對企業如此重要，本研究除單獨討論企業往來關係、組織內之知識分享對企業財務績效的影響外，尚探討自變數對企業財務績效的交互影響。 　　本研究之樣本來自台灣智慧資本研究中心之「智慧資本企業實地調查問卷」，共172家我國上市櫃公司。本研究以「經常往來供應商」與「經常往來顧客」代理企業往來關係，以「高階主管討論會議頻率」及「整合企業資訊及建立知識庫」代理組織內知識分享，而應變數為總資產報酬率、股東權益報酬率、權益市價淨值比與Tobin's Q值。研究期間為2004年1月至12月，以線性迴歸方式進行實證分析。 　　實證結果顯示，對電子產業而言，經常往來供應商愈多，且高階主管討論會議的頻率愈高，對企業的財務績效愈不好；當企業有整合企業資訊及建立知識庫時，對企業財務績效具正向影響。除此之外，更發現二自變數的確對企業財務績效具交互影響及部分遞延效益。 / As competitive environment nowadays, corporation need close relationships with its related parties. It is critical that guanxi and relationship root in corporation to share this kind of knowledge, and even spread out the whole corporation for better performance. Shortly, the objective of this paper is to explore the relationship among guanxi, knowledge sharing and financial performance. The data, which is from the TICRC's questionnaire, is composed of 172 firms of Taiwan's stock exchange market and OTC during 2004. This paper used suppliers (LNSUP) and customers (LNCUS) as the guanxi variables respectively, managers’ meeting frequency (FRE_MAN) and database establishment (DABASE) as the knowledge sharing variables separately, and ROA, ROE, M/B and Tobin's Q as the financial performance independently. Linear regression model was applied and found that, to the electronic industry, the more suppliers and the higher frequency of managers’ meetings, the worse financial performance. Another finding is the more comprehensive database establishment, the better financial performance. Furthermore, guanxi and knowledge sharing indeed have interaction with financial performance and partially defer its influence to the next period.

The objectives of this study are to determine the awareness level of knowledge sharing amongst the employees of Sasol, to determine how Sasol utilises human capital in the company and to identify and analyse the methods of knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer. The literature review distinguishes between explicit and tacit knowledge. Explicit knowledge leads a company to codify while tacit knowledge leads to connecting people. The literature study also covers the utilisation of human capital and identifies methods of knowledge sharing and -transfer, namely legacy pages, expert location systems, buddy systems, post-retirement agreements, identification of successors, After Action Reviews, interviews, observation, protocol analysis, teach backs, story writing and storytelling, and process mapping. The literature study forms the foundation for the formulation and designing of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed amongst the employees of two of Sasol's divisions in order to obtain data about the utilisation of human capital in Sasol and to identify and analyse the current and preferred methods to capture and share tacit knowledge and skills. The data obtained from the questionnaires was processed, analysed and interpreted. Conclusions were drawn, linking the literature review and the results obtained from the empirical study. Based on these conclusions, recommendations were made. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

Employees' knowledge is a critical resource for the organization, and if it is not shared, it is lost to other employees and the organization. However, knowledge sharing (KS) does not happen easily; KS is a personal choice that cannot be forced. This study employs Self-Determination Theory (SDT) as a theoretical framework to study employees' KS behavior and motivations. Data were collected from full-time working professionals (N=208) using an online survey. The effects of autonomy, motivation, trust, authentic leadership style (ALS), knowledge self-efficacy, and technology were studied using moderated and mediated regression analyses. The results reveal (a) knowledge is shared more when individuals have more autonomy; (b) benevolence-based and institution-based trust had a moderating effect on autonomy and KS behavior (when autonomy was low, if benevolence-based or institution-based trust was high more KS occurred); (c) competence-based trust did not have a similar moderating effect, but had a significant main effect predicting KS; and (d) a supervisor's ALS contributed in explaining the total variance of KS behavior and predicted KS after controlling for autonomy. All three types of trust mediated the relationship between ALS and KS. Moreover, knowledge self-efficacy is a strong predictor of KS, while users' perception of technology is a moderate predictor. Additionally, a factor analysis was conducted on 15 different types of KS technologies used by participants. Technologies were clustered into three groups based on their degree of interactivity. Only high-interactive technologies positively correlated with trust predicted KS. This study advances prior findings and contributes to KS research and practice. It was the first to examine relationships between ALS and KS, proved that SDT is a strong framework in predicting KS motivations, and showed only high-interactive technologies positively linked with trust predict KS. Organizations could use these findings to develop appropriate strategies and trainings to foster a KS environment.

Il web 2.0 ha totalmente riconfigurato il mondo della prevenzione e promozione della salute. In particolare esso ha cambiato il ruolo e le tipologie di scambi tra pazienti. Tali scambi sono centrali in quanto permetto di costruire e condividere conoscenza utile nella cura. Sebbene la rilevanza dei processi di costruzione e condivisione tra pazienti online siano chiarita dalla letteratura, questa area di studi comprende una varietà e confusione di etichette e teorie non chiariti e condivisi. Scopo di questa ricerca è di studiare gli ambienti e scambi online sul diabete in Italia tramite esplorazione sistematica del web al fine di capire come processi di condivisione e costruzione di conoscenza funzionano e come i contesti online li riconfigurano / The Web 2.0 has totally changed the healthcare prevention and communication world .In particular, it has reconfigured lay exchanges between patients. These exchanges are important because they allow knowledge processes (like knowledge sharing or knowledge building). Although the importance of online knowledge processes between patients is well established, this field of study brings together a variety of theories with concepts not uniformly shared or understood. It’s not clear how patients use Web 2.0 for knowledge processes. The aim of this research is to study online contexts and exchanges about diabetes in Italy by developing a systematic exploration of Web 2.0 in order to define how knowledge processes work and how online contexts shape them