INDECS, Vol. 24 No. 2, 2026.
Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.7906/indecs.24.2.5
How Knowledge Hiding Increases Public Sector Employees’ Engagement in Political Acts: A Study from the Perspective of Target
Bashir Ahmad
; Government College University Faisalabad, Department of Public Administration, Faisalabad, Pakistan
Zaryab Zafar
; Government College University Faisalabad, Department of Public Administration, Faisalabad, Pakistan
Masood N. Kalyar
; Government College University Faisalabad, Lyallpur Business School, Faisalabad, Pakistan
*
* Corresponding author.
Abstract
Drawing from Conservation of Resource theory, this study takes target’s perspective on co-workers’ knowledge hiding and its impact on target’s political acts. We further propose that knowledge hiding depletes target’s cognitive resources which in turn lead target to disengage morally. Resultantly, morally disengaged employees tend to engage in political acts. Using survey method, data was collected from 234 respondents working in public sector organizations of Pakistan. We employed CB-SEM to analyse hypothesized relationships. Results display a positive relationship between knowledge hiding and political acts suggesting that greater likelihood of experiencing knowledge hiding from co-workers’ triggers target employee to engage in political acts. Results also indicate that knowledge hiding increases ego depletion by expending one’s cognitive resources and in turn leads towards one’s moral disengagement. Finally, data also provided support for serial mediating effect of knowledge hiding on political acts through ego depletion and moral disengagement.
Keywords
knowledge hiding; moral disengagement; ego depletion; political acts
Hrčak ID:
345589
URI
Publication date:
20.3.2026.
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