Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities

As online communities (OCs), each with unique characteristics and dynamics, proliferate on the Internet, the question of what makes some more successful than others, in terms of engagement and participation, certainly merits research attention. Scholars have argued that these communities use narrati...

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Main Authors: Leyton Escobar, M., Kommers, Petrus, Beldad, A.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Elsevier 2014
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/51693
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author Leyton Escobar, M.
Kommers, Petrus
Beldad, A.
author_facet Leyton Escobar, M.
Kommers, Petrus
Beldad, A.
author_sort Leyton Escobar, M.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description As online communities (OCs), each with unique characteristics and dynamics, proliferate on the Internet, the question of what makes some more successful than others, in terms of engagement and participation, certainly merits research attention. Scholars have argued that these communities use narratives to keep members engaged and to channel participation in their various activities, so this research aimed to evaluate if narratives play a significant role in this matter. Members of an OC were invited to participate in an online survey (n = 2028) and three hypotheses about sense of community, participation in culture formation and participation in community successes were tested. Results show that narratives play a significant role in participatory behavior. Specifically, it was found that narratives play two roles: first, as an amplifier of membership and shared values in the effects each of these have in participation; and second, as a mediator between both needs fulfillment and influence and shared emotional connection, and participation. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-516932017-09-13T15:35:59Z Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities Leyton Escobar, M. Kommers, Petrus Beldad, A. As online communities (OCs), each with unique characteristics and dynamics, proliferate on the Internet, the question of what makes some more successful than others, in terms of engagement and participation, certainly merits research attention. Scholars have argued that these communities use narratives to keep members engaged and to channel participation in their various activities, so this research aimed to evaluate if narratives play a significant role in this matter. Members of an OC were invited to participate in an online survey (n = 2028) and three hypotheses about sense of community, participation in culture formation and participation in community successes were tested. Results show that narratives play a significant role in participatory behavior. Specifically, it was found that narratives play two roles: first, as an amplifier of membership and shared values in the effects each of these have in participation; and second, as a mediator between both needs fulfillment and influence and shared emotional connection, and participation. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 2014 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/51693 10.1016/j.chb.2014.04.013 Elsevier restricted
spellingShingle Leyton Escobar, M.
Kommers, Petrus
Beldad, A.
Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities
title Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities
title_full Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities
title_fullStr Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities
title_full_unstemmed Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities
title_short Using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities
title_sort using narratives as tools for channeling participation in online communities
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/51693