Purpose. The first aim of this study was to test the relationship between shared leadership and team performance. The second aim was to examine how much this relationship can be mediated by knowledge sharing, cognitive-based, and affective-based trust in the team. Method. In this study, a sample of 186 full-time employees (76.3% men and 23.7% women) of an Iranian organization were recruited by a simple random sampling technique. Participants were asked to complete scales on shared leadership, cognitive-based trust in the team, affective-based trust in the team, knowledge sharing, and team performance effectiveness and productivity. Findings. The path analysis using structural equation modeling (SEM) showed a significant positive relationship between shared leadership and team performance (i.e., effectiveness and productivity). Moreover, it was revealed that knowledge-sharing and affective-based trust in teams significantly mediate the relationship between shared leadership and team performance. However, the mediation role of cognitive-based trust was not supported. Finally, it was found that cognitive-based trust mediates the relationship between shared leadership and knowledge sharing. Research limitation. We used a cross-sectional research design to analyze the data which may have limited the generalizability of our findings. Practical implementation. A shared leadership style can be suggested for team-building programs for people/managers and companies working in teams. Originality. This study suggests shared leadership as a potential source that can enhance a sense of affective-based trust and sharing knowledge in teams, leading to higher levels of team performance effectiveness

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