Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating role of knowledge management in the relationship between social interaction and innovation performance. Design/methodology/approach The population in the study is the Taiwanese firms listed in the China Credit Information Service Incorporation. A stratified random sampling method was used to select 176 firms in Taiwan. The usable response rate was 23.47 per cent. The study employed LISREL to test the hypothesized relationships in the path‐analytic framework. Findings The results indicate that social interaction is positively related to knowledge management. Knowledge management is, in turn, positively related to administrative and technical innovation performance. Further, the results provide evidence that knowledge management plays a mediating role between social interaction and innovation performance. Originality/value The study highlights the importance of social interaction and knowledge management in the process of innovation, and helps scholars and managers to better understand the mediator of knowledge management through which social interaction benefits innovation performance.
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