Knowledge management systems (KMS) continuance in organizations

Abstract

This study explores the phenomenon of employees' continuance behaviors in using knowledge management systems (KMS) in organizations. KMS can only meet implementing organization's expectations when employees in those organizations continually use them. Based on prior IS user acceptance and continuance research, this study formulates a general KMS continuance model in which both continuance intention and organizational facilitating conditions predict the employees' KMS continuance behavior. The moderating effect of habit on the relationship between intention and continuance is also considered. Moreover, it is paid attention that the existing KM research has yielded extent theoretical explanations but each of them offers different sets of factors influencing knowledge sharing or KMS utilization. We argue that in order to achieve a better understanding of KMS continuance behaviors, scholars need to consider both perspectives of KMS continuance: knowledge contribution and knowledge seeking. Therefore, we propose that by decomposing individual belief into multi-dimensional belief constructs specific to knowledge contribution and knowledge seeking contexts, the diverse factors in KM literature can be consistently related to the antecedents of behavioral intention of KMS continuance. Longitudinal data from an international company was collected in order to empirically test the proposed KMS continuance model and two sets of users' belief specific to behavioral context. The results present strong support to all proposed hypotheses. User's continuance intention and organizational facilitating conditions are significant predictors of KMS continuance for both contribution and seeking behaviors. User's habit exerts strong moderating effect on the relationship between intention and continuance behavior. Additional evidence is offered to explain the specific beliefs in different behavioral contexts. This study contributes to the academic area of KM and KMS by theoretical development in KMS continuance and decomposed users' belief in knowledge contribution and seeking contexts, by adapting and improving some IS instruments to be more specific to KM context, and by creating and validating a set of questionnaires of KMS continuance in Chinese. In addition, the results of this study are especially managerially relevant.