Unveiling the impact of blockchain affordances on knowledge hiding: a three-wave cross-cultural study

Purpose:
This study examines the influence of blockchain affordances – transparency, traceability and immutability – on perceptions of fairness and their role in mitigating knowledge hiding in organizations.

Design/methodology/approach:
Drawing on affordance theory, we develop and test a model using three-wave survey data from employees in the United States and China, representing culturally and economically distinct contexts.

Findings:
The results show that blockchain affordances, which reduce ambiguity in organizational processes, provide accurate and accountable record-keeping, and protect the integrity of records and decisions, positively affect perceived fairness, which, in turn, significantly reduces knowledge-hiding behavior.

Practical implications:
Organizations can strategically implement blockchain technology to promote fairness, thereby creating open and collaborative environments by reducing knowledge hiding. This study offers a cross-cultural perspective, providing insights into how blockchain technology affordances operate across different regulatory and cultural settings.

Originality/value:
There is limited empirical evidence on how blockchain affordances influence employees' knowledge-hiding behavior. This paper addresses this gap by examining how blockchain affordances – transparency, traceability and immutability – affect knowledge hiding in organizational settings. This research contributes to the blockchain literature by shifting the focus from technical applications to behavioral implications, highlighting how blockchain affordances can address complex organizational challenges. Furthermore, it extends the knowledge-hiding literature by introducing blockchain as a novel driver of fairness and collaboration.