Title: Knowledge Sharing: The Spillover Effects of Process versus Outcome Accountability

Suyun Wu

Ph.D. Candidate in Accounting

Scheller College of Business

Georgia Institute of Technology

Email: suyun.wu@scheller.gatech.edu

Date: Tuesday June 7th, 2022

Time: 2:00PM to 3:30PM EDT

Location/Meeting Link:

https://gatech.zoom.us/j/94356682773?pwd=cUJKeHFPSzRXVXE3b2hGSlVnRXcrdz09

Committee

1. Dr. Xi (Jason) Kuang (Advisor) – Scheller College of Business, Georgia Institute of Technology
2. Dr. Nikki MacKenzie – Scheller College of Business, Georgia Institute of Technology
3. Dr. Jane Thayer – Scheller College of Business, Georgia Institute of Technology
4. Dr. Kathy Rupar-Wang – Scheller College of Business, Georgia Institute of Technology
5. Dr. Kristy Towry – Goizueta Business School, Emory University

Abstract:

Whereas prior literature has examined how process and outcome accountability affect task performance, this paper experimentally investigates the spillover effects of these accountability requirements on employees’ knowledge-sharing behavior. Because outcome accountability draws attention to task output, employees who produce higher output may be more confident in their performance and, therefore, are more willing to share task-specific knowledge. In contrast, process accountability focuses attention on exploring new decisions, which may negatively affect short-term output. As a result, employees who engage more in exploration may produce lower output, yet these employees may be more confident in their performance and more willing to share knowledge. As predicted, experimental results show that employees with higher output are more willing to share their knowledge under outcome accountability but are less willing to share knowledge under process accountability. Mediation analysis confirms that employees’ confidence in performance underlies these results. The influences of knowledge sharing on the productivity of coworkers who receive the shared knowledge are also examined.