Behavioral insights into knowledge work

Friess, Svenja (2025): Behavioral insights into knowledge work: information sourcing, peer dynamics, and gender disparities in ideation. Dissertation, LMU München: Volkswirtschaftliche Fakultät

Abstract

The overarching objective of this dissertation is to investigate factors that influence the transmission and generation of knowledge within organizations. Specifically, this thesis aims to understand core trade-offs in knowledge-sourcing behavior (Chapter 1), peer dynamics in engaging and communicating on digital platforms (Chapter 2), and gender disparities in innovative processes (Chapter 3). The first essay examines how reputational concerns influence advice-seeking behavior at work, revealing how misperceptions about its reputational consequences can inhibit knowledge sourcing. The second study provides insights into how early, positive interactions can enhance future participation on a knowledge exchange platform, offering platform designers guidance on sustaining user engagement and improving platform value. Finally, the third essay investigates how competition incentives and competitor gender composition impact gender disparities in generating and selecting innovative ideas. In order to comprehend the phenomena mentioned above, all chapters of this dissertation regard broad and heterogeneous samples of knowledge workers from the United States and the United Kingdom. This dissertation utilizes a modern mix of quasi-experimental, experimental, and text data methods. This dissertation exploits a quasi-experimental setting in Chapter 2 and uses two artefactual online field experiments in Chapters 1 and 3. For the questions studied in these two experimental chapters, the availability of real field settings that would allow for a consistent comparison of tasks and decisions without potentially significant career concerns for participants was limited.

• Dokumententyp: Dissertationen (Dissertation, LMU München)
• Keywords: knowledge flows, advice seeking, creative ideation, user engagement, non-monetary incentives, reputational concerns, peer dynamics, competitive environments, experiment, NLP text analysis
• Themengebiete: 300 Sozialwissenschaften ; 300 Sozialwissenschaften > 330 Economics
• Fakultäten: Volkswirtschaftliche Fakultät
• Sprache der Hochschulschrift: Englisch
• Datum der mündlichen Prüfung: 13. Januar 2025
• 1. Bericht­erstatter:in: Harhoff, Dietmar