Knowledge creation in universities and some related factors

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a theoretical picture of the concept of knowledge creation and then investigate the effects on it of such variables as social capital and organizational culture. Design/methodology/approach – The population of this study includes faculty members of the University of Isfahan (Iran) in 2008 (476 cases). From among these cases, 142 cases were selected based on the Cochran formula. Survey was used as the research method and a questionnaire was used for data collection. Pearson correlation “r” and multi‐variable regression were employed, and in the next stage, through drawing the model of structural equations, the direct effects, indirect effects and total effects of independent variables on the dependent variable were investigated, based on path analysis model. SPSS and LISREL were employed for statistical analysis. Findings – The results revealed that social capital and organizational culture had meaningful effect on knowledge creation. The analysis showed that the independent variables mentioned above could determine 36 percent of the effects of the dependent variable. Research limitations/implications – The findings are based, in the main, on an extensive, single university study; therefore it is necessary to be cautious about generalizing the result of this study to other universities in Iran. Originality/value – The paper can contribute to organizations through providing a holistic picture of the role of knowledge creation in organizations (especially universities).