Informational cascades and knowledge sharing in virtual communities: An Empirical study

This study investigates information cascades in knowledge sharing behavior in virtual communities. A research framework based on the social cognitive theory is developed to identify factors that would influence information cascades in knowledge sharing behavior in virtual communities. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is employed to test the hypotheses empirically. A survey involving a total of 213 university students is conducted and confirmatory factor analysis used to determine the measurement efficacies. The results of this paper help to identify the motivation of individuals' informational cascades behavior in knowledge sharing in virtual communities.