ABSTRACT
This study investigated the roles of interpersonal feelings in knowledge seeking in China. Specifically, the study examined and tested the potential effects of two interpersonal feelings (jiaoqing and ganqing) prevalent in China on Chinese employees’ seeking of explicit and tacit knowledge from others. Using data from a survey of 143 employees from Chinese firms, the study found jiaoqing (based on instrumental exchanges) positively related to both explicit and tacit knowledge seeking. On the other hand, ganqing, which is more expressive in nature, had no effect on either explicit or tacit knowledge seeking. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.
