research-article

Socialization tactics in wikipedia and their effects

Authors:

Kira Alexander,

Robert E. Kraut,

John M. LevineAuthors Info & Claims

CSCW '10: Proceedings of the 2010 ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work

Pages 107 - 116

https://doi.org/10.1145/1718918.1718940

Published: 06 February 2010 Publication History

Abstract

Socialization of newcomers is critical both for conventional groups. It helps groups perform effectively and the newcomers develop commitment. However, little empirical research has investigated the impact of specific socialization tactics on newcomers' commitment to online groups. We examined WikiProjects, subgroups in Wikipedia organized around working on common topics or tasks. In study 1, we identified the seven socialization tactics used most frequently: invitations to join, welcome messages, requests to work on project-related tasks, offers of assistance, positive feedback on a new member's work, constructive criticism, and personal-related comments. In study 2, we examined their impact on newcomers' commitment to the project. Whereas most newcomers contributed fewer edits over time, the declines were slowed or reversed for those socialized with welcome messages, assistance, and constructive criticism. In contrast, invitations led to steeper declines in edits. These results suggest that different socialization tactics play different roles in socializing new members in online groups compared to offline ones.

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Rychwalska ATalaga SZiembowicz KJemielniak D(2025)Quality teamwork on Wikipedia: Interpersonal communication networks as a social capital boosterJournal of the Association for Information Science and Technology10.1002/asi.70014Online publication date: 5-Aug-2025
https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.70014
Zhao AHobbs W(2025)The Effects and Non-Effects of Social Sanctions from User Jury-Based Content Moderation Decisions on WeiboProceedings of the 2025 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3706598.3713154(1-17)Online publication date: 26-Apr-2025
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3713154
Turzo ASultana SBosu A(2025)From First Patch to Long-Term Contributor: Evaluating Onboarding Recommendations for OSS NewcomersIEEE Transactions on Software Engineering10.1109/TSE.2025.355088151:4(1303-1318)Online publication date: Apr-2025
https://doi.org/10.1109/TSE.2025.3550881
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Index Terms

Socialization tactics in wikipedia and their effects
1. Human-centered computing
  1. Collaborative and social computing
    1. Collaborative and social computing theory, concepts and paradigms
      1. Computer supported cooperative work
  2. Human computer interaction (HCI)
    1. Interaction paradigms
      1. Web-based interaction
2. Social and professional topics
  1. Professional topics
    1. Computing and business
      1. Computer supported cooperative work

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