Knowledge sharing in open source software project teams: A transactive memory system perspective

The extant studies have not empirically examined the possible team cognitive mechanisms that facilitate knowledge sharing in OSS teams, even though knowledge sharing is a cognitive task and an OSS team is a complex cognitive system. To fill this research gap, we adopt the perspective of transactive memory system (TMS) to explore the relationships among TMS, knowledge sharing, communication quality, and technical achievement of OSS teams. By analyzing data from 95 OSS projects with the partial least squares (PLS) method, our study demonstrates that several TMS dimensions have positive impacts on knowledge sharing behaviors and communication quality. Moreover, communication quality positively influences technical achievement of OSS teams. These findings provide useful implications for literature and practice.

► We examine the possible team cognitive mechanism that facilitates knowledge sharing in open source software (OSS) teams. ► We adopt the perspective of transactive memory system (TMS). ► We explore the relationships among TMS, knowledge sharing, communication quality, and technical achievement of OSS teams. ► Several TMS dimensions have positive impacts on knowledge sharing behaviors and communication quality. ► Communication quality positively influences technical achievement of OSS teams.