Title: The effects of port employees' perceptions of tacit knowledge and transaction cost on knowledge transfer

Authors: Chin-Shan Lu; Szu-Yu Kuo

Addresses: Department of Logistics and Maritime Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong ' Department of Transportation and Communication Management Science, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan City 701, Taiwan

Abstract: This study empirically examined the effects of tacit knowledge and transaction cost on knowledge transfer, and transaction cost as a mediator of the relationship between tacit knowledge and knowledge transfer in the port context. Using data collected from a survey of 233 employees in the Keelung Port Corporation in Taiwan, structural equation modelling (SEM) was employed to test the research hypotheses. The research findings indicated that port employees' perceptions of tacit knowledge and transaction cost negatively influence knowledge transfer, and tacit knowledge positively impacts on transaction cost. The findings also showed that an employee's perception of transaction cost mediates the relationship between tacit knowledge and knowledge transfer. The implications of the study findings for knowledge transfer in port operations are discussed.

Keywords: port employees; employee perceptions; tacit knowledge; transaction cost; knowledge transfer; Taiwan; structural equation modelling; SEM; port operations.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSTL.2014.057813

International Journal of Shipping and Transport Logistics, 2014 Vol.6 No.1, pp.46 - 68

Received: 26 Mar 2013
Accepted: 19 May 2013
Published online: 24 May 2014 *

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