Knowledge integration process in construction projects: a social network analysis approach to compare competitive and collaborative working

Abstract

Research on knowledge integration across organizational boundaries is still very limited because of the assumption that knowledge is a critical asset, which should be secured within organizational boundaries. A variety of knowledge management frameworks have presented the same common characteristics, including information sharing as the basis for knowledge management, a supportive culture, trust and proximity. Social network analysis is used to examine the knowledge integration process in collaborative and competitive working systems on four case study projects based on public sector organizations. This involved shadowing participants and conducting interviews. Participants were selected from a set of functional teams according to their role. Five participants were interviewed from each project in order to check the validity and reliability of the data. The knowledge integration patterns are presented by quantitative methods using the social network analysis approach.