From: Benjamin Mako Hill Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2012 23:41:44 +0000 (-0400) Subject: read through a print out and it looks good to integrate into a letter X-Git-Url: https://projects.mako.cc/source/bmh-research_statement/commitdiff_plain/08d0e91b7203854e515dce5812a492cb82752140 read through a print out and it looks good to integrate into a letter --- diff --git a/research_statement.tex b/research_statement.tex index aaf1e4c..23438ae 100644 --- a/research_statement.tex +++ b/research_statement.tex @@ -65,24 +65,25 @@ Using Internet-based peer production projects as my research settings, my work seeks to understand the conditions for collective action using observational data from real communities. This work has been shaped by three complentary approaches: (1) the comparison of failures to -build communities to rare successful attempts through the use of -projects as the unit of analysis; (2) attention to the role of -reputation and status in the mobilization of volunteers; and (3) -analysis of design changes as ``natural experiments'' building a -deeper, and often causal, understanding of social processes using -observational data. Nearly all of my work incorporates at least two of -these approaches. +build communities to rare successful attempts; (2) attention to the +role of reputation and status in the mobilization of volunteers; and +(3) analysis of design changes as ``natural experiments'' building a +deeper, and often causal, understanding from observational +data. Nearly all of my work incorporates at least two of these +approaches. -\section{Projects As Unit of Analysis} +\section{Studying Attempts at Collective Action} Although there have been many thousands of studies of online -collective action the vast majority have only considered successful -projects like Wikipedia and Linux. The majority of research on -collective action -- on and offline -- has only considered projects -that have successfully mobilized. In this sense, most previous -analyses of collection action have systematically selected on their -dependent variable. Most of my research treats projects as the unit of -analysis and collective action as the outcome of interest. +collective action, the vast majority have only considered projects +like Wikipedia and Linux that have successfully built communities -- a +characterization that can be extended to observational work on +collective action more generally. In this sense, most previous +analyses have systematically selected on their dependent +variable. Instead, most of my research treats projects as the unit of +analysis and collective action as the outcome of interest -- comparing +the successful examples of collective action to attempts that never +got off the ground. % \begin{wrapfigure}{r}{0.4\textwidth} % \begin{centering} @@ -112,16 +113,15 @@ contributors. Although the paper's methods diverge from the quantitative, ``big data'' approach typical of most of my work, the research question and strategy is representative. -I have also followed this strategy in a series of quantitative -studies of the Scratch online community: a public website where a large +I have also followed this strategy in a series of quantitative studies +of the Scratch online community: a public website where a large community of users create, share, and remix interactive media. The community is built around the Scratch programming environment: a freely downloadable desktop application that allows amateur creators to combine media with programming code (see Figure -\ref{fig:scratchapp}). Despite the fact that Scratch is a community -designed to promote collaboration through content remixing, only about -ten percent of Scratch projects attract a second -contributor. +\ref{fig:scratchapp}). Although Scratch is a community designed to +promote collaboration through content remixing, only about ten percent +of Scratch projects attract a second contributor. In one study, co-authored with Andrés Monroy-Hernández and forthcoming in American Behavioral Scientist, I test several of the most widely @@ -148,13 +148,13 @@ displeasure \cite{hill_responses_2010}. This year, I am conducting a population-level analysis in a new dataset I have created that includes 80,000 attempts at wikis (i.e., public, editable, websites similar to Wikipedia). In my first working -paper using this dataset, I consider inter-organizational effects of -competition for volunteer labor and find little support for a widely -cited ecological model of collective action from sociology that treats +paper using this dataset, I consider inter-organizational competition +for volunteer labor and find little support for a widely cited +ecological model of collective action from sociology that treats volunteer labor as a fixed and finite resource. Instead, I show that contributions to different wikis on the same topic or theme are driven primarily by environment-level changes in interest and that projects -may even benefit from complimentarities and synergies +can even benefit from complimentarities and synergies \cite{hill_is_2012}. \section{Reputation and Status} @@ -237,8 +237,9 @@ minimally re-designed for women and girls (see Figure \ref{fig:lilypad}) -- lead to large increases in the proportion of women contributors and drastic shifts in the type of projects created \cite{buechley_lilypad_2010}. I have also explored how technical -errors may be able to provide similar opportunities for analysis -\cite{hill_revealing_2010}. +errors may be able to provide similar opportunities for analysis by +interrupting normal operation of a system and revealing internal +processes that are usually hidden \cite{hill_revealing_2010}. % or changes in socio-technical systems describing responsibility for a piece of software can lead to an important impact in the type and structure of contributions in peer production \cite{michlmayr_quality_2003} @@ -271,7 +272,7 @@ collection action in relation to one set of important predictors. In future work, I plan to evaluate the effect of governance and different systems of authority, framing, modularity and project complexity. In the long term, I hope to offer a broad set of principles of -design for online collection action and community. +design for online collection action. \emph{Toolkits for Experimental Social Design} -- My research has been possible through personal relationships I have with a series of @@ -282,15 +283,15 @@ communities to encourage contributions and improve users' experiences. Most of the time, these organizations have very little idea if these changes are effective. I plan to seek funding for, and to create, a technical framework and a network of academic and -practitioner collaborators, to facilitate well-designed natural +practitioner collaborators to facilitate well-designed natural experiments by the hosts of large online communities and to share data that allows for academic evaluation of these experiments. Although I study cooperation, I also practice it. In graduate school, -I have collaborated with a large and engaged group of co-authors in -many academic departments. I intend to continue doing so. In sum, my -research uses design to contribute to social scientific theories of -collective action, and uses theories of collective action to influence +I have collaborated with a large group of co-authors in many academic +departments. I intend to continue doing so. In sum, my research uses +design to contribute to social scientific theories of collective +action, and uses theories of collective action to influence design. Although my research settings are online communities, I believe my work has implications for a broad range of disciplines and fields.