Why People Keep Using Knowledge Management Systems: A Causal Analysis of Continuance Behavior

Abstract

This study examines the factors that cause a person to become a continuous user of a knowledge management system by examining continuance behavior. Continuance behavior is the decision to continue using a product after initial use. The data for this study were obtained using an online survey. The results were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling. Six main hypotheses were developed which resulted in the evaluation of fourteen hypotheses. The results show that the technological features of a knowledge management system positively influence a user’s evaluation with limited influence from the system’s community features. The results produced a 58% coefficient of determination for knowledge management systems continuance intention and 37% for knowledge management systems continuance behavior. This investigation serves as a foundation for further research on the continuance usage of knowledge management systems. It addresses the needs of practitioners by examining which conditions they can manage to increase the purposeful use of their organizations’ knowledge management systems. The study also addresses the needs of academia by expanding the literature on continuance behavior of knowledge management systems.