Abusive supervision, dehumanization, knowledge hiding behavior and psychological capital – a daily diary method study

Abstract

Purpose

Knowledge is the source of competitive advantage, but when shared at all levels. Unfortunately, there is a universal unruly present in the form of knowledge hiding at employees’ level, but the causes and remedies are still vague as past studies have rarely investigated the causes of daily knowledge hiding behavior. Against this backdrop, this study aims to entail a daily diary method investigation of the role of daily abusive supervision in daily employees’ knowledge hiding through the mediation of dehumanization and moderation of psychological capital.

Design/methodology/approach

The data for this study is collected using a daily diary method approach, which estimates the daily workplace events and their continuous influence on employees’ feelings (i.e. dehumanization) and actions (knowledge hiding). The daily responses of 279 respondents were considered useful for analysis purposes.

Findings

The findings of the study revealed that the daily events of abusive supervision have both direct and indirect (through dehumanization) influence on employees’ daily knowledge hiding behavior. Moreover, psychosocial capital has a significant conditional influence in the relationships of negative workplace treatments (abusive supervision and dehumanization) and their outcomes (i.e. knowledge hiding).

Research limitations/implications

The study provides some theoretical and practical insights by providing the explanatory and coping mechanism between continuous abusive supervision and daily knowledge hiding behavior.

Originality/value

There is a dearth of literature that has focused on daily episodes of abusive supervision, dehumanization and knowledge hiding behavior. Furthermore, the moderating role of psychological capital has also been rarely investigated.