Impacts of Social Network Structure on Knowledge Sharing in Open Source Software Development Teams

The study examines the relationship between social network structure and knowledge sharing in Open Source Software (OSS) development teams. One hundred and fifty projects were selected from SourceForge.net using stratified sampling. Social network structure was measured by two indices: degree of centralization and core/periphery fitness. Knowledge sharing was measured from two aspects: the quality of knowledge sharing that is indicated by the helpfulness of messages and the quantity of knowledge sharing that is indicated by the number of messages. The results show that social network structure significantly affects the quantity of knowledge sharing. However, social network structure does not influence the quality of knowledge sharing. In addition to the contribution to OSS literature, the results of this study also inform OSS practice

A Longitudinal Study on Member Contributions in Open Source User Oriented Community

A longitudinal study was conducted in this research to examine member contributions in an Open Source Software User- Oriented Community (OSSUOC). Data were collected from both mailing-list archives and meeting minutes of a local Linux user group over a six-year period. Social Network Analysis and Web archive analysis were used to identify core contributors of activities in different categories. Member contributions were then measured based on the intensity, the breadth, and the continuance of participation across activities and years. The results suggest the importance of a balance between online and offline activities in an OSSUOC. Additionally, offline outreach activities play a more crucial role in stimulating the overall participation of an OSSUOC. The research contributes to the understanding of individual contributions and overall performance in an OSSUOC

Network Configuration in App Design: The Effects of Simplex and Multiplex Networks on Team Performance

Members of mobile app design teams collaborate with each other to accomplish tasks and/or to socialize. However, how network configuration of instrumental and expressive interactions affects team creativity, efficiency, and satisfaction has not yet been studied. Accounting for both simplex and multiplex social networks in teams, this study develops a research model examining the mechanisms by which the centralization of different types of networks impacts team performance. To test our research hypotheses, we collected data from 62 student teams working on an app design class project. We found that the centralization of the instrumental-expressive multiplex network reduces teams’ information elaboration and similarity perception; the centralization of the instrumental simplex network is beneficial to information elaboration; and team information elaboration positively influences team creativity, efficiency, and satisfaction. We also found that team similarity perception negatively affects team creativity and positively affects team satisfaction. To alleviate concerns about the potential simultaneity bias between network configuration and information elaboration or similarity perception, we replicated the results based on a cross-lagged analysis with additional data collected from 48 design teams at two points: at team establishment and at project completion. This paper contributes to the literature on software development by examining the mechanisms via which the configuration of multiplex and simplex networks affects team performance

Pre-Evaluation Results of Project KMS Artifact

The document contains the protocols and results of the three workshops and the pilot study conducted in the pre-evaluation of the ADR projec