Title: Social capital, knowledge sharing and operational performance in the supply chain: a buyer-supplier perspective

Authors: Sina Zare; Kuldeep Singh; Yasaman Ghasemi; Edmund L. Prater

Addresses: Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, Neil Griffin College of Business, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, AR 72401, USA ' Department of Management and Marketing, College of Business, Arkansas Tech University, Russellville, AR 72801, USA ' Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, College of Business Administration, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA 90015, USA ' Department of Information Systems and Operations Management, College of Business Administration, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76010, USA

Abstract: The vast majority of literature on social capital has focused on the impact of the different dimensions of social capital on the buying firms' performance within the buyer-supplier context. A few studies investigated the relationship between the distinct dimensions of social capital (structural, cognitive, and relational capital) and how they influence the firm's performance outcome. Drawing upon social capital theory, this paper develops a model that examines cognitive capital's mediating role in the relationship between structural capital and relational capital. The model also considers knowledge sharing as the outcome of relational capital, and knowledge sharing mediates the relationship between the buying firm's relational capital and operational performance. The empirical results suggest that cognitive capital mediates the relationship between structural capital and relational capital. Relational capital significantly impacts knowledge sharing, and knowledge sharing partially mediates the relationship between the firm's relational capital and operational performance. This study is one of the few that examines the relationship among different social capital dimensions and identifies knowledge sharing as a critical pathway between the firm's social capital and performance.

Keywords: supply chain; operations management; structural capital; cognitive capital; relational capital; social capital; knowledge sharing; operational performance.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBSR.2023.131724

International Journal of Business and Systems Research, 2023 Vol.17 No.4, pp.387 - 406

Received: 27 Nov 2020
Accepted: 28 Apr 2021
Published online: 30 Jun 2023 *

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