Motivations of Wikipedia contributors
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
is an online encyclopedia
that can be edited by anyone. The encyclopedia is maintained by volunteers who willingly edit and create articles with no monetary recompense. Several studies have been done into the motivations of Wikipedia contributors, including a collaborative survey by the Wikimedia Foundation and Collaborative Creativity Group at UNU-MERIT.
people to contribute to the site. Several academic studies have been carried out in order to try to determine what these motivations are. While similar conclusions have been drawn between different studies, there have also been significant differences of opinion.
based motivations such as "I like to share knowledge which gives me a sense of personal achievement."
To these six motivations he also added the following two:
The survey found that the most commonly indicated motives were "fun," "ideology," and "values," whereas the least frequently indicated motives were "career," "social," and "protective."
launched a survey of readers and editors of Wikipedia. This was the most comprehensive survey of Wikipedia ever conducted.
The results of the survey were published two years later on March 24, 2010.
. Also mentioned is the potential addictive quality of editing Wikipedia. Gina Trapani
of Lifehacker said "it turns out editing an article isn't scary at all. It's easy, surprisingly satisfying and can become obsessively addictive." Jimmy Wales
has also commented on the addictive quality of Wikipedia, saying "The main thing about Wikipedia [...] is that it’s fun and addictive".
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
is an online encyclopedia
Encyclopedia
An encyclopedia is a type of reference work, a compendium holding a summary of information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge....
that can be edited by anyone. The encyclopedia is maintained by volunteers who willingly edit and create articles with no monetary recompense. Several studies have been done into the motivations of Wikipedia contributors, including a collaborative survey by the Wikimedia Foundation and Collaborative Creativity Group at UNU-MERIT.
Academic studies
Since the creation of Wikipedia in 2001, academics have been interested in what motivatesMotivation
Motivation is the driving force by which humans achieve their goals. Motivation is said to be intrinsic or extrinsic. The term is generally used for humans but it can also be used to describe the causes for animal behavior as well. This article refers to human motivation...
people to contribute to the site. Several academic studies have been carried out in order to try to determine what these motivations are. While similar conclusions have been drawn between different studies, there have also been significant differences of opinion.
Heng-Li Yang and Cheng-Yu Lai
Yang and Lai's paper "Motivations of Wikipedia content contributors" hypothesised that because contributing to Wikipedia is voluntary, an individual's enjoyment of participating would be the highest motivator. However, their study showed that although people might initially start editing Wikipedia out of enjoyment, the most likely motivation for continuing to participate is self-conceptSelf-concept
Self-concept is a multi-dimensional construct that refers to an individual's perception of "self" in relation to any number of characteristics, such as academics , gender roles and sexuality, racial identity, and many others. Each of these characteristics is a research domain Self-concept (also...
based motivations such as "I like to share knowledge which gives me a sense of personal achievement."
Andrea Forte and Amy Bruckman
In 2005, Forte and Bruckman wrote a paper called "Why Do People Write for Wikipedia? Incentives to Contribute to Open-Content Publishing" in which they discussed the possible motivations of Wikipedia contributors. They apply Latour and Woolgar's concept of the cycle of credit to Wikipedia contributors, suggesting that the reason that people write for Wikipedia is to gain recognition within the community.Oded Nov
In his 2007 paper "What Motivates Wikipedians", Oded Nov related the motivations of volunteers in general to the motivations of people who contribute to Wikipedia. Nov carried out a survey using the six motivations of volunteers, identified in an earlier paper. These six motivations are:- Values – expressing values to do with altruism and helping others
- Social – engaging with friends, taking part in activities viewed favourably by others
- Understanding – expanding knowledge through activities
- Career – gaining work experience and skills
- Protective – e.g. reducing guilt over personal privilege
- Enhancement – demonstrating knowledge to others
To these six motivations he also added the following two:
- Ideology – expressing support for what is perceived to be the underlying ideology of the activity (e.g. the belief that knowledge should be free)
- Fun – enjoying the activity
The survey found that the most commonly indicated motives were "fun," "ideology," and "values," whereas the least frequently indicated motives were "career," "social," and "protective."
Wikimedia surveys
The Wikimedia Foundation has carried out two surveys of Wikipedia contributors and users in 2010 and 2011. The 2011 survey is the beginning of a process of semi-annual surveys in order to understand Wikipedia editors more and better cater to their needs.2008 survey
In 2008 the Wikimedia Foundation, alongside the Collaborative Creativity Group at UNU-MeritUNU-MERIT
UNU-MERIT is a joint research and training institute of United Nations University and Maastricht University , based in Maastricht in the southeast Netherlands....
launched a survey of readers and editors of Wikipedia. This was the most comprehensive survey of Wikipedia ever conducted.
The results of the survey were published two years later on March 24, 2010.
Anecdotal evidence
Editors of Wikipedia have occasionally given personal testimonials of why they contribute to Wikipedia. A common theme of these testimonials is the enjoyment that editors seem to get from contributing to Wikipedia and being part of the Wikipedia communityCommunity of Wikipedia
The community of Wikipedia is a loosely-knit network of volunteers, sometimes known as "Wikipedians", who make contributions to the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia...
. Also mentioned is the potential addictive quality of editing Wikipedia. Gina Trapani
Gina Trapani
Gina Marie Trapani is an American tech blogger, web developer, and writer.Trapani founded the Lifehacker blog in January 2005, and led it until January 2009. She co-hosts a netcast on the TWiT.tv network called with Leo Laporte and Jeff Jarvis. She also hosted twelve episodes of Work Smart, a...
of Lifehacker said "it turns out editing an article isn't scary at all. It's easy, surprisingly satisfying and can become obsessively addictive." Jimmy Wales
Jimmy Wales
Jimmy Donal "Jimbo" Wales is an American Internet entrepreneur best known as a co-founder and promoter of the online non-profit encyclopedia Wikipedia and the Wikia company....
has also commented on the addictive quality of Wikipedia, saying "The main thing about Wikipedia [...] is that it’s fun and addictive".
See also
- Academic studies about WikipediaAcademic studies about WikipediaIn recent years there have been numerous academic studies about Wikipedia in peer-reviewed publications. This research can be grouped into two categories. The first analyzed the production and reliability of the encyclopedia content, while the second investigated social aspects, such as usage and...
- Community of WikipediaCommunity of WikipediaThe community of Wikipedia is a loosely-knit network of volunteers, sometimes known as "Wikipedians", who make contributions to the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia...
- Knowledge managementKnowledge managementKnowledge management comprises a range of strategies and practices used in an organization to identify, create, represent, distribute, and enable adoption of insights and experiences...
- WikipediaWikipediaWikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...