Contributive uniqueness on knowledge management: relationship between organizational recognition of contributive uniqueness and the knowledge management processes

Abstract

The present study aims to analyze in what extent the organizational recognition of the contributive uniqueness has impact in knowledge management processes. Contributive uniqueness (Dos Santos, 1999) is the unique contribution of each individual to the team’s functioning when working cooperatively. The uniqueness of individuals seems to be, on one hand, an individual need, and on the other hand a characteristic which can contribute to enrichment of the team or organizational performance. Knowledge management (Pais, 2014) is a set of daily activities related to the creation and development of internal organizational conditions, which catalyze every knowledge-related process. The impact of this relation has not yet been studied. Therefore, this research will contribute to the understanding of the relationships between the collectivizing and individualizing trends in organizations. This project gains from the research traditions (1) on organizational recognition, (2) on knowledge management, (3) and on human uniqueness. Our sample had 1117 subjects, 39.2% male and 60.3% female, aged between 18 and 69 years (M = 39.8; SD = 11.2). All have a bond of at least one year with the organization where they work, representing a wide range of business sectors. Two instruments were used: The Knowledge Management Questionnaire – Short Form (KMQ-SF, Pais, 2014); and the Organizational Recognition of the Contributive Uniqueness Questionnaire (ORCUQ, Cabo-Leitão & dos Santos, 2011). A descriptive and correlational analysis were performed for each scale factor and global scale, as well as univariate and multivariate regression analysis. Moderations between the ORCUQ factors, and between the gender and ORCUQ factors in the prediction of the KMQ-SF dimensions were also conducted. Results showed a large effect of 41% (R2) of the ORCUQ in the prediction of KMQ-SF.