Novel Perspectives on Knowledge Hiding in Organizations

The purpose of this symposium is to bring together ongoing research on knowledge hiding in organizations – the intentional attempt to conceal or withhold knowledge that other organization members have requested. Specifically, the papers included in the symposium report recent advancements in the field of knowledge hiding in organizations. The presentations span in their focus across rewards, leadership, employee silence, and aspects of organizational design. Specifically, they describe how knowledge hiding is related to exploitative leadership (Presentation 1), the effects of a forced distribution rating system on knowledge sharing and hiding within the team (Presentation 2), shared mental models (Presentation 3), centrality (Presentation 4), and the employee silence - motives nexus (Presentation 5). This symposium contributes to the growing stream of research by adding novel perspectives to knowledge hiding theory, which has been predominantly based on social exchange and reciprocity research. Keywords: Knowledge hiding; exploitative leadership; performance management; relational models; organizational centrality; employee silence