Linking perceived knowledge hiding to organizational citizenship behavior toward individuals: the serial mediation of affective trust and willingness to cooperate

Purpose This study aims to investigate the serial mediating roles of affective trust (AT) and willingness to cooperate (WC) in the relationship between perceived knowledge hiding (PKH) and organizational citizenship behavior directed toward individuals (OCBI) drawing on the principles of social exchange theory (SET). Design/methodology/approach A quantitative research design was used to test the proposed research model. The data were collected from professionals working in the banking sector in İstanbul, Türkiye. The analyses were conducted using SPSS 25 and AMOS 24 and hypotheses were tested using PROCESS Macro for SPSS (Model 6). Findings Findings indicate that PKH is negatively associated with OCBI and that this association is reflected in statistically significant indirect pathways through AT and WC, both individually and through the serial pathway. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by examining knowledge hiding (KH) from a relatively underexplored perspective of the knowledge seeker. By integrating AT and WC into a serial mediation model, it provides insights into the underlying relational mechanisms linking PKH to OCBI and offers directions for future research.