Conceptual Foundations of Online Communities

The purpose of this working paper is to provide conceptual foundations for the reader interested in online communities. A useful summary of research conducted on online communities is provided in this paper. Beside several classifications for online communities, we will also pay attention to the questions why consumers belong to online communities, and what are the reasons and motives for consumers to join these communities. The different perspectives for the reasons and motives complement each other. We have proposed a valueinterest framework where several theories are combined into one, integrated model. The value-interest framework looks the motives from several perspectives simultaneously. It must be remembered, however, that beside this integrated model, it is fruitful to look at the motives and reasons from the different perspectives separately, too

Studying social network sites with the combination of traditional social science and computational approaches

Social Network Sites (SNSs) are fundamentally changing the way humans connect, communicate and relate to one another and have attracted a considerable amount of research attention. In general, two distinct research approaches have been followed in the pursuit of results in this research area. First, established traditional social science methods, such as surveys and interviews, have been extensively used for inquiry-based research on SNSs. More recently, however, the advent of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) has enabled data-centric approaches that have culminated in theory-free “big data” studies. Both of these approaches have advantages, disadvantages and limitations that need to be considered in SNS studies. The objective of this dissertation is to demonstrate how a suitable combination of these two approaches can lead to a better understanding of user behavior on SNSs and can enhance the design of such systems. To this end, I present two two-part studies that act as four pieces of evidence in support of this objective. In particular, these studies investigate whether a combination of survey and API-collected data can provide additional value and insights when a) predicting Facebook motivations, b) understanding social media selection, c) understanding patterns of communication on Facebook, and d) predicting and modeling tie strength, compared to what can be gained by following a traditional social science or a computational approach in isolation. I then discuss how the findings from these studies contribute to our understanding of online behavior both at the individual user level, e.g. how people navigate the SNS ecosystem, and at the level of dyadic relationships, e.g. how tie strength and interpersonal trust affect patterns of dyadic communication. Furthermore, I describe specific implications for SNS designers and researchers that arise from this work. For example, the work presented has theoretical implications for the Uses and Gratifications (U&G) framework and for the application of Rational Choice Theory (RCT) in the context of SNS interactions, and design implications such as enhancing SNS users’ privacy and convenience by supporting reciprocity of interactions. I also explain how the results of the conducted studies demonstrate the added value of combining traditional social science and computational methods for the study of SNSs, and, finally, I provide reflections on the strengths and limitations of the overall research approach that can be of use to similar research efforts.As Redes Sociais (SNSs - Social Network Sites) estão a mudar de form fundamental a maneira como os seres humanos estabelecem ligações entre si, como comunicam e como relacionam-se uns com os outros, tendo atraído uma considerável quantidade de atenção investigativa. Em geral, duas abordagens de investigação distintas foram seguidas na procura de resultados nesta área de investigação. Em primeiro lugar, os já estabelecidos métodos tradicionais das ciências sociais, tais como inquéritos e entrevistas foram amplamente utilizados na investigação baseada em SNSs. Contudo, o surgimento mais recente das Interfaces de Programação de Aplicações (APIs - Application Programming Interfaces) tem permitido abordagens centradas em dados que têm culminado em estudos de "dados extensos", livres de teoria. Ambas estas abordagens têm vantagens, desvantagens e limitações que precisam de ser consideradas nos estudos de SNS. O objectivo desta dissertação é demonstrar como uma combinação adequada destas duas abordagens pode levar a uma melhor compreensão do comportamento do utilizador em SNSs e pode melhorar a concepção de tais sistemas. Para esse efeito, apresento dois estudos, em duas partes, que funcionam como quatro peças de prova em apoio a este objectivo. Estes estudos investigam, em particular, se uma combinação de dados recolhidos através de inquéritos e API pode fornecer valor adicional e conhecimentos ao a) prever as motivações do Facebook, b) compreender a selecção dos meios de comunicação social, c) compreender os padrões de comunicação no Facebook, e d) prever e modelar a força dos laços, em comparação com o que pode ser ganho seguindo uma ciência social tradicional ou uma abordagem computacional isolada. Abordo em seguida como os resultados destes estudos contribuem para uma compreensão do comportamento online tanto a nível do utilizador individual, por exemplo, como as pessoas percorrem o ecossistema SNS, e ao nível das relações diádicas, por exemplo, como a força dos laços e a confiança interpessoal afectam os padrões de comunicação diádica. Além disso, descrevo as implicações específicas para os designers e investigadores do SNS que decorrem deste trabalho. Por exemplo, o trabalho apresentado tem implicações teóricas para o quadro de Usos e Gratificações (U&G - Uses and Gratifications framework) e para a aplicação da Teoria da Escolha Racional (RCT - Rational Choice Theory) no contexto das interacções SNS, e implicações de design, como o reforço da privacidade e conveniência dos utilizadores de SNS, com o apoio à reciprocidade das interacções. Explico também como os resultados dos estudos realizados demonstram o valor acrescentado de combinar as ciências sociais tradicionais e os métodos computacionais para o estudo de SNS, e, por fim, apresento reflexões sobre os pontos fortes e limitações da abordagem global de investigação que podem ser úteis a esforços de investigação semelhantes

Sustainable Success: Motives and Small-Scale Charity Sport Events

Charity sport events are an effective and fun way to raise money for non-profit organizations and charitable causes. As more annual events are occurring, it is crucial to understand the primary consumers and contributors of charity sport events. Specifically, understanding the motives of charity event participants and sponsors is fundamental to not only increasing the event popularity but also sustaining it. Previous charity sport researchers have indicated that participant motives generally fall into three categories: social, health, and advocacy (Won et al., 2010), while sponsor motives are primarily philanthropy or social responsibility and increased brand recognition (Abratt et al., 1987). The purpose of this study was to discover if these same participant and sponsor motives hold true for a small-scale charity sport event. Participants and sponsors of the 2018 CoopStrong 4-Miler (n=256) were asked to complete an online survey consisting of demographic and open-ended questions regarding motives and their involvement in the CoopStrong event. The survey data were then analyzed using Nvivo 12 software. Using open-coding the researcher determined the most salient participant and sponsor motives. The results indicated that both participants and sponsors were motivated by four main themes. These themes were categorized as Personal Connection, ALS Awareness, F3/FiA Involvement, and Fitness. Due to underperformance and lack of participation, almost 1,000 charity sport events were cancelled in 2017 (Kadet, 2011). Consequently, CoopStrong and other charities must continue to better understand event sponsor and participant motives to ensure future and sustainable success

Understanding the Motivations of Consumer Knowledge Sharing in Online Community

Today’s advanced web-based technologies create expanded opportunities for collaboration and customer knowledge sharing. However, research on customer knowledge sharing in web-based communication remains new. This study aims at proposing a theoretical framework for understanding customer sharing behaviors, which we define as voluntary acts of contributions by providing information or sharing experiences, from a motivational perspective. Our focus is on why people are motivated to make contributions in online community where contributions occur primarily through internet and communication technologies. We apply Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (the motivation theory) to explore how individual motivations influence customer knowledge sharing in online community. Particularly, customer knowledge sharing is modeled as a response to varied motivations. These motivations are proposed to be influenced by the availability of reputation systems. Given the importance of global knowledge sharing in today’s world, we expect the research findings can be useful for outlining some generic guidelines for promoting customer knowledge sharing in online community

O que Leva à Doação do Conhecimento em Comunidades de Software Livre?

The aim of this research is to study motivations that drive knowledge sharing in free software communities as explained by Social Exchange Theory. A survey method was adopted in which a questionnaire was administrated during a free software event, answered by members of free software communities. Structural Equation Modelling was used in the data analysis. From a social exchange view, trust, feedback, altruism, status, self-efficacy and reciprocity motivate knowledge sharing in free software communities and some have an indirect influence on knowledge collection and knowledge donation processes. Altruism is the only motivation that directly influences knowledge sharing. Reciprocity is directly linked to knowledge collection and self-efficacy and status are directly linked to knowledge donation. Status is directly and negatively related to knowledge donation. Influence of knowledge collection on knowledge donation was supported. The main contribution is showing the existence of relationships between motivations driving knowledge sharing in free software communities as explained by Social Exchange Theory, instead of investigating a direct relationship between each motivation and knowledge sharing. The findings of this research are useful for leaders of communities who can use them to leverage knowledge sharing. O objetivo desta pesquisa é estudar as motivações que impulsionam o compartilhamento de conhecimento em comunidades de software livre, como explicado pela Teoria da Permuta Social. O método de pesquisa adotado foi o survey, com um questionário administrado durante um evento de software livre e respondido por membros de comunidades. Modelagem de Equações Estruturais foi utilizada na análise de dados. Confiança, feedback, altruísmo, status, auto-eficácia e reciprocidade motivam o compartilhamento de conhecimento em comunidades de software livre e algumas destas motivações têm uma influência indireta nos processos de coleta e doação. O altruísmo é a única motivação que influencia diretamente o compartilhamento de conhecimento. A reciprocidade está diretamente ligada à coleta de conhecimento e a auto-eficácia e status estão diretamente ligadas à doação de conhecimento. O status está direta e negativamente relacionada à doação de conhecimento. A influência da coleta de conhecimento na doação de conhecimento foi suportada. A principal contribuição do artigo está em mostrar a existência de relações entre motivações que levam ao compartilhamento ao invés de investigar somente uma relação direta entre cada motivação e o compartilhamento de conhecimento. As descobertas são úteis para líderes de comunidades que podem usá-las para alavancar o compartilhamento de conhecimento