Understanding Knowledge Sharing Among Millennials Using a Processual Nonlinear Model: A Longitudinal Qualitative Study

Abstract

This study investigates the temporal complexity of knowledge sharing (KS) among Polish working millennials, integrating complexity and configurational theories with social motivation and social cognitive perspectives. It explains how trust, reciprocity, and knowledge features drive KS through motivation and self-assessment over time. We employed a time-lagged research design, collecting survey data across multiple waves. Sequential fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was applied to uncover causal configurations leading to both the occurrence and non-occurrence of KS. Results highlight the nonlinear and configurational nature of KS, showing that combinations of trust, reciprocity, and knowledge features (combined with motivation and self-assessment) explain temporal patterns of KS. Distinct causal recipes account for both successful knowledge sharing and its absence, demonstrating the dynamic and contingent character of the phenomenon. The findings provide actionable insights for managers seeking to enhance KS practices. Interventions should focus on cultivating trust and reciprocity while reinforcing employees’ motivation and self-assessment capacities to sustain long-term knowledge exchange. This study offers original longitudinal evidence on the processual mechanisms underpinning KS among millennials. By combining configurational and temporal perspectives, it advances understanding of how social and cognitive factors interact to foster or inhibit KS.