User:Annikahille/Win20 COM482 Wiki Report

Annika Hille - Wiki Reflection Essay

The process of creating a Wikipedia article was one of the most fulfilling educational experiences I have had throughout my college career. The application of course concepts to a specific online community was an enriching way for me to fully understand the reasoning behind certain theories and examples discussed in class. The project transformed my outlook on Wikipedia as a vital source of information. While most people choose not to participate in the content production of the online community, they rely on Wikipedia to provide accurate facts about general or even very specific topics. I have come to respect the community and its standards of conduct through my creation of an article, ASUW Shell House, which did not previously exist on Wikipedia. My exposure to the norms of the community guided my research and writing of the article, while the process reinforced my takeaways from class. Overall, I noticed a number of aspects of Wikipedia that uphold the norms and a structure that is well-established. However, I have a few recommendations that this essay will outline and explain related to moderation, socialization of newcomers, and motivation.

In deciding my article topic, I first scrolled through article stubs. However, I landed on the ASUW Shell House, drawing on my own prior knowledge of its rich history and significance in the context of the University of Washington. I began constructing my article by conducting research from reliable sources and creating a bibliography. From our WikiEdu course and reference to other articles, I quickly understood the norms regarding article tone and structure, so I began to pull facts from each source. Once I had compiled the information, I wrote the article lead in my own words, making sure to cite each source. Building from the lead seemed easier once I had a comprehensive understanding of the structure of the article. In creating an article from scratch, I not only learned about the topic itself, but about the process of consolidating information from multiple sources into one simple, concise, and readable article. I learned how to read and understand the concepts presented in sources, then regurgitate that information into my own words. I also explored and understood the logistics of using Wikipedia’s editing platform.

After my experience, I have several pieces of actionable advice to the Wikipedia community. The first is in regards to encouraging contribution in a positive manner. As explained in the BSOC textbook, “People will be more willing to contribute in an online group when the group is small rather than large” (Chapter 2; Design Claim 33). Wikipedia has a large online audience, but WikiProjects provides a smaller space within the community. People are intrinsically or extrinsically motivated when the benefits to contribute outweigh the costs of doing so. The drive for most Wiki members is intrinsic; they feel that providing the greater public information fulfills them personally. Professor Hill noted that “fun” is the number one reason to participate in online communities. I found it satisfying to create an article, but the general public might not feel the same. Therefore, Wikipedia needs to incentivize participation. In the case of Scratch, the site administrators chose to incentivize people to create projects through a front-page section that showed the most popular remixes. This backfired because it decreased the complexity of the remixes. Wikipedia could incentivize quality edits and new articles by showing a “featured new” section of articles that are moderated to encourage people to participate positively. This will focus on behavior to create descriptive norms. If people see their work earning recognition, they could feel intrinsic satisfaction that could ensure their commitment. Another piece of advice is to provide a template for those authors creating new articles. In my case, one of the challenges of creation was understanding the standards required to create an article. A template with subheadings and a reference section in place could make it easier for people to correctly format without having to take a WikiEdu course.

My last pieces of advice relate to the education and socialization of newcomers, to foster meaningful and accurate contributions. Because Wiki is such a large community, it could be more important for them to focus on socializing current members and contributors. Since most people don’t take the WikiEdu course online, Wikipedia could implement an “entry barrier” that would prevent oblivious editors from running into trouble and ensure they understand the norms of the community. This could be a tutorial similar to the WikiEdu exercises. As a newcomer, if I hadn’t been part of the WikiEdu program, I might still have created the article on my own, but most likely would not have followed all the standards outlined in many of our exercises. While Wiki’s norms are clear (Assume Good Faith, Be Bold, Sign your messages with four tildes, Notability) I’m not sure most newcomers would pay attention unless explicitly directed to do so.

Finally, Wikipedia could consider allowing edits to go live only after a moderator approves them, to prevent harmful, malicious, or unintentional errors. Trolls and spammers are always a threat, but the most common problems occur due to uninformed people with a desire to help. The peer reviews and advice from Salt gave me actionable and specific advice. I found this to be extremely helpful in crafting and polishing my article. But most editors and first-time contributors don’t receive a peer review. Slashdot employs a moderation and met-moderation system to review content, especially comments; this could turn away some potential contributors, but also ensure the accuracy and credibility of Wikipedia’s information.

The Wikipedia assignment has proved to be a successful applied learning method for me. I feel comfortable contributing to the site, and I have greater respect for the community. Wikipedia’s large-scale impact can be attributed to its upholding of norms and standards guiding the conduct within the community, and while there are some areas where I could see improvement through my learning and personal experiences, Wiki’s system is a great success.