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Toward an analytic framework for understanding and fostering peer-support communities in using and evolving software products

Authors:

Gerhard FischerAuthors Info & Claims

C&T '09: Proceedings of the fourth international conference on Communities and technologies

Pages 1 - 10

https://doi.org/10.1145/1556460.1556462

Published: 25 June 2009 Publication History

Abstract

The fundamental challenge for social computing is to contribute to fostering communities in which humans can transcend the limitation of the unaided,individual human mind by helping each other.Going beyond antidotal examples requires an analytical framework in which to interpret data in order to understand the context- and application-specific nature of these collaborations. We have studied peer-support communities (PSCs) in the context of the SAP Community Network (SCN), which relies on forums and conferences to support their collaboration.

This research attempts to create a deeper understanding of the effectiveness of social support provided by peers in software development communities from the following perspectives:

Responsiveness--how responsive are communities to the needs of its members?

Engagement Intensity--how timely is the peer support?

Role Distribution--how wide is the participation of users and in what kind of roles do they participate?

Reward System--what is the impact of explicit reward (point) systems on community behavior?

The data gained from analyzing these perspectives (and their comparison with open source software peer-support communities) has provided insights and led to an increased understanding of what works in PSCs. Here we articulate some initial design guidelines to further improve the potential benefits gained from these communities.

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Cited By

Kasemsap K(2016)Utilizing Communities of Practice to Facilitate Knowledge Sharing in the Digital AgeOrganizational Knowledge Facilitation through Communities of Practice in Emerging Markets10.4018/978-1-5225-0013-1.ch011(198-224)Online publication date: 2016
https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0013-1.ch011
Tseng FKuo F(2014)A study of social participation and knowledge sharing in the teachers' online professional community of practiceComputers & Education10.5555/2753879.275412172:C(37-47)Online publication date: 1-Mar-2014
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.5555/2753879.2754121
Shull F(2013)The Human Element in Social NetworkingIEEE Software10.1109/MS.2013.1730:1(2-6)Online publication date: Jan-2013
https://doi.org/10.1109/MS.2013.17
Show More Cited By

Index Terms

Toward an analytic framework for understanding and fostering peer-support communities in using and evolving software products
1. Human-centered computing
  1. Collaborative and social computing
2. Social and professional topics
  1. Professional topics
    1. Computing and business

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cover image ACM Other conferences

C&T '09: Proceedings of the fourth international conference on Communities and technologies

June 2009

306 pages

ISBN:9781605587134

DOI:10.1145/1556460

General Chair:
John M. Carroll
College of Information Sciences and Technology, the Pennsylvania State University, USA

Copyright © 2009 ACM.

Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected]

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Publication History

Published: 25 June 2009

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C&T '09

C&T '09: Communities and Technologies

June 25 - 27, 2009

PA, University Park, USA

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Overall Acceptance Rate 80 of 183 submissions, 44%

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Cited By

Kasemsap K(2016)Utilizing Communities of Practice to Facilitate Knowledge Sharing in the Digital AgeOrganizational Knowledge Facilitation through Communities of Practice in Emerging Markets10.4018/978-1-5225-0013-1.ch011(198-224)Online publication date: 2016
https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0013-1.ch011
Tseng FKuo F(2014)A study of social participation and knowledge sharing in the teachers' online professional community of practiceComputers & Education10.5555/2753879.275412172:C(37-47)Online publication date: 1-Mar-2014
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.5555/2753879.2754121
Shull F(2013)The Human Element in Social NetworkingIEEE Software10.1109/MS.2013.1730:1(2-6)Online publication date: Jan-2013
https://doi.org/10.1109/MS.2013.17
Fischer G(2013)From renaissance scholars to renaissance communities: Learning and education in the 21st century2013 International Conference on Collaboration Technologies and Systems (CTS)10.1109/CTS.2013.6567198(13-21)Online publication date: May-2013
https://doi.org/10.1109/CTS.2013.6567198
Goggins SJahnke I(2013)CSCL@Work: Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning at the Workplace—Making Learning Visible in Unexpected Online Places Across Established BoundariesComputer-Supported Collaborative Learning at the Workplace10.1007/978-1-4614-1740-8_1(1-20)Online publication date: 7-Mar-2013
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1740-8_1
Goggins SJahnke I(2012)CSCL@WorkInternational Journal of Sociotechnology and Knowledge Development10.4018/jskd.20120701024:3(17-37)Online publication date: 1-Jul-2012
https://doi.org/10.4018/jskd.2012070102
Fischer G(2012)Context-aware systemsProceedings of the International Working Conference on Advanced Visual Interfaces10.1145/2254556.2254611(287-294)Online publication date: 21-May-2012
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/2254556.2254611
Fischer GStevenson D(2011)Beyond interactionProceedings of the 23rd Australian Computer-Human Interaction Conference10.1145/2071536.2071553(112-121)Online publication date: 28-Nov-2011
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/2071536.2071553
Fischer G(2011)Understanding, fostering, and supporting cultures of participationInteractions10.1145/1962438.196245018:3(42-53)Online publication date: 1-May-2011
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/1962438.1962450
Arief Bvan Moorsel AGreathead DCoventry L(2011)Towards the implementation of an internet-based neighbourhood watch scheme-Impacts of inclusive technologies on societies2011 International Conference on Computational Aspects of Social Networks (CASoN)10.1109/CASON.2011.6085913(25-30)Online publication date: Oct-2011
https://doi.org/10.1109/CASON.2011.6085913
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