In the mind of the beholder: Mis-alignment of perceptions of dyadic knowledge transfer

Abstract

Departing from a common assumption in the knowledge management literature that knowledge transfer partners agree on the existence of the exchange itself, we argue that partners’ perceptions of the transfer of complex knowledge can be mis-aligned. We build on the literature on social cognition to propose that either familiarity between knowledge exchange partners or salience of one exchange partner vis-à-vis the other reduce the likelihood of mis-alignment. We test the hypotheses within the context of a knowledge-intensive company using Exponential Random Graph Models. Our results show that mis-alignment in perceptions of complex knowledge transfers occur more frequently than alignment. We also find that familiarity between knowledge exchange partners increases the likelihood of both alignment and mis-alignment, except for when mutual trust is involved – in this case alignment is more likely. Salience of the exchange partner, on the other hand, significantly reduces the likelihood of mis- alignment when salience is due to organizational unit affiliation, but not when it is due to hierarchical differential. We discuss how these findings contribute to our understanding of dyadic knowledge transfer in organizations.