Revisiting social capital and knowledge sharing processes in tertiary education: Vietnamese and Bangladeshi students as target populations

Abstract

The current study revisited social capital and knowledge sharing processes in virtual communities among university students. The conceptual framework was developed in the form of a hierarchical component model. Two dimensions of social capital (relational and cognitive) as second-order variables reflected sequencing relationships among social capital, outcome expectations, knowledge sharing, and learning performance. Social capital theory was used in support of the study’s conceptual framework. The target populations were Vietnamese and Bangladeshi students at Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City and Comilla University, respectively. The sample included a total of 465 participants recruited through purposive and quota sampling in the two target populations. We used partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) to estimate the hierarchical component model. Our findings suggest that the cognitive dimension of social capital, and outcome expectations (i.e., personal and community-related) had significantly positive impacts on knowledge sharing behaviour; and subsequently that knowledge sharing behaviour had a significantly positive impact on learning performance. Moreover, a multi-group analysis was conducted to deliver new insights when making comparisons among different sub-samples. The study provides theoretical contributions to the fields of social capital and knowledge sharing through delivering related best practices among university students in virtual communities, and outlines promising directions for further research.