Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management

Trust, Knowledge Sharing, and ICT Effects on Distributed Agile Performance in Pakistan

Sanober Fatima, Mazni Omar, Mazida Ahmed — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The rising adoption of distributed agile teams has reshaped the global software industry. However, sustaining their effectiveness remains a significant challenge, particularly in the rapidly evolving Information Technology (IT) industry. While trust dynamics, knowledge sharing process, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) are extensively recognized as essential facilitators of collaboration, their interconnections in distributed agile teams remain underexplored. The present study examined the relationship between Cognitive-based Trust (CBT) and Affect-based Trust (ABT) and key knowledge-sharing processes, including Socialization (SOC) and Externalization (EXT), and assessed their mediation role in relation to Agile Distributed Team Performance (ADTP). The study also investigated the moderating role of ICT in these relationships. To address the objectives, a quantitative, cross-sectional research design was adopted. Data were collected through a survey using structured questionnaires from ADTP associated with the IT industry of Pakistan. Using purposive sampling, three major cities, namely Lahore, Karachi, and Islamabad, were selected. As a result, 193 responses were deemed usable for data analysis. The study utilized Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to investigate the hypothesized relationships. SPSS 25 and SmartPLS 4 were applied to test hypothesized relationships. The most important findings demonstrate that CBT is significantly associated with both knowledge-sharing processes and team performance, whereas ABT shows weaker or non-significant effects. SOC and EXT are confirmed as key mediators linking trust to ADTP. ICT strengthens EXT but provides limited support for SOC-related processes. By integrating trust theory, selected SECI knowledge conversion processes, and socio-technical perspectives, this study advances understanding of trust and ICT operating through process-specific boundary conditions in distributed agile collaboration. It also provides practical guidance for emerging IT contexts. The findings also have implications for e-learning practices through an emphasis on CBT, knowledge articulation, and the efficient development of ICT in collaborative learning and knowledge-sharing within technology-oriented learning environments. On the other hand, the empirical demonstration of the role of socio-technical enablers in the knowledge-sharing process and its impact on performance in a collaborative learning environment enhances the existing e-learning literature. It also highlights the importance of fostering CBT, improving documentation practices, and aligning ICT use with relational engagement to enhance ADTP.

Knowledge Adoption in China: The Roles of Ganqing and Renqing

Michael Jijin Zhang — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This study sought to advance our understanding of what affects knowledge adoption (a key process of knowledge sharing) in China by exploring the impact of two main affective determinants (ganqing and renqing) of Chinese interpersonal relationships on Chinese employees’ adoption of explicit and tacit knowledge contributed by their peers. Compared with two other main processes (contribution and seeking) of knowledge sharing and their determinants, knowledge adoption and its contributing factors have received much less attention in the extant literature on knowledge sharing in China. The effects of ganqing and renqing on explicit and tacit knowledge adoption were examined and tested with the data from a survey of 243 MBA students in China. The results from the hierarchical regression analyses showed that ganqing was positively related to explicit knowledge adoption and tacit knowledge adoption. Renqing was also found to be positively related to the adoption of both types of knowledge. While effective knowledge sharing relies on both the ‘supply of knowledge’ through knowledge contribution and the ‘demand of knowledge’ via knowledge adoption, prior research on knowledge sharing in China has placed more emphasis on the supply side of knowledge sharing and its determinants. By linking knowledge adoption to two affective factors, the findings from this study help address this imbalance in the knowledge sharing research related to China and increase our knowledge of what might have hindered the diffusion of knowledge management in China and how to better promote it. Other research and practical implications from the study are discussed.

Strengthening Youth Farmer Regeneration Through Knowledge Management Practices in Farmer Communities

Wildan Avian Pratama, Tita Alfaricha — Thu, 18 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This study discusses how knowledge management (KM) practices at the community level can help regenerate youth in farming communities as part of the farmers. The study is based on the KM model proposed by Probst (1998), which comprises the identification, acquisition, development, distribution, use and preservation of knowledge as interrelated processes that maintain intergenerational sustainability of the agricultural sector. By filling a major research gap, the study relates to the paucity of empirical research specifically examining farmer regeneration through a KM lens, the dearth of understanding how KM practices are lived differently by generations and the dearth of research on how Indonesian farming communities experience indigenous, formal and digital knowledge systems in sustaining agriculture across generations. These observations indicate that KM activities in the community, such as knowledge sharing through participation, intergenerational learning, mentoring, and leadership opportunities, are at the centre stage in influencing youth engagement and their motivation to join the agricultural sector. As much as structural barriers remain, such as a lack of access to land, failure to change perceptions about agricultural work, and dissimilar exposure to modern agricultural knowledge, farmer groups can entice and keep young farmers by promoting collaborative learning settings and utilising both traditional and new sources of knowledge. On the whole, this paper contributes to a clear understanding of the importance of a community-based approach to knowledge management around the area of youth unemployment in agriculture and provides conceptual and practical recommendations to policymakers, non-governmental organisations, and agricultural institutions to enhance farmer regeneration and intergenerational agricultural knowledge.