Forgiveness as a catalyst for knowledge sharing: overcoming the effects of abusive supervision on relational attachment

Knowledge sharing has assumed special importance in modern knowledge-based economy. Extant research pertaining to knowledge sharing primarily focused on antecedents that encourage knowledge sharing with scant attention to its barriers. Drawing on attachment theory, we proposed and tested a moderated mediation model in which forgiveness climate moderates the indirect relationship between abusive supervision and knowledge sharing via relational attachment with their supervisor. Analyses from STUDY 1 revealed that the negative relationship between abusive supervision and employees’ relational attachment with their supervisor was moderated by forgiveness climate such that the relationship is weaker when forgiveness climate is higher. Based on this, the results of STUDY 2 revealed that: (1) Abusive supervision affects knowledge sharing through the mediating role of relational attachment with supervisor; (2) Forgiveness climate further moderated the indirect effect of abusive supervision on knowledge sharing through employees’ relational attachment with their supervisor such that the indirect relationship was weakened when forgiveness climate is high rather than low. Theoretical and practical implications and future directions are discussed.