User:Charityjoyn/Report

Wikipedia has been a constant presence in my life, as it was a reliable source of information on various topics for my growing up. As I progressed through middle school and high school, my view of it changed as teachers warned us about its reliability as a source of information because of its open-editing model. Although I knew Wikipedia was collaborative and that anyone could edit it, I never realized that I was actually able to edit and make contributions until I enrolled in my Online Communities class. Enrolling in this course and contributing to an article I was passionate about transformed my view of Wikipedia, and made me realize how much potential there is for millions of users who, like me, only use Wikipedia to consume content. As I was learning and editing on Wikipedia, I learned about the benefits of the platform and also the challenges that new contributors, like me, experience. As a new editor who has spent the past months engaging in this platform, I have identified some challenges and key strategies that will improve the onboarding process for newcomers and encourage community engagement and participation.

Navigating Wikipedia as an editor was daunting to me because of how big and complex the site looked. Fortunately, I was able to navigate it well with the support of WikiEdu and the clear goals and weekly expectations set by my professor. I was also fortunate enough to have taken this class with 30 other students who were also on the same boat as I am, so I had the opportunity to collaborate with my peers, which fostered a sense of community for me throughout my editing experience. I experienced collective socialization, where most of us were newcomers who were navigating the site and editing on a similar timeline. While WikiEdu, the guidance from my professor, and community eased my entry into the Wikipedia editor community, I realized that not all new contributors have access to this network and sense of community. There was a barrier to entry for new users on Wikipedia, and it is difficult for newcomers as they have little sense of their role, low sense of self-efficacy, and lack of social acceptance. Without a community and a place they can easily ask for help, Wikipedia’s interface and structure can be overwhelming because of the rules and features they have, leading to feelings of inadequacy by new users. Simplifying the onboarding process and providing a sense of community can improve newcomer integration and increase commitment after their first edit.

The first strategy Wikipedia can implement is providing a “classroom” onboarding experience on the website itself, where new contributors can learn with ease, connect with fellow new users, and learn from experienced editors. Users can be prompted to join a “classroom” when they want to start contributing, where they will have access to the modules and a community. This only benefits users, but also the platform and existing community, as most new users will be in one place and going through the same training, leaving less room for errors and trolls.

When it was time to start looking for a stub to edit, I found the process quite challenging. As mentioned, a lot of the articles have been left as stubs, which means I had to go through pages and pages of articles before I found one that I was interested in. Although there is a page dedicated to stub articles that is organized by category and alphabetically, the number of results were overwhelming and time-consuming. One way to improve this would be to put a recommendations or feature tab for articles that need improvement when users engage with or read an article on specific topics. This feature not only creates an easy way for users to find stub articles, but can also encourage user participation on topics they are interested in. This aligns with the principles of identity-based commitment theory, where a sense of belonging or community can encourage users to contribute to Wikipedia's mission, and turning users from readers to contributors.

Another suggestion would be to create a landing page and onboarding experience for new contributors, where they will be prompted to answer questions about their demographic and interests. Based on this, Wikipedia can curate recommendations that align with the users. Users can then be placed in subcommunities based on their chosen categories, similar to the format of platforms like Reddit. In these communities, users can interact with fellow contributors, learn from experienced editors, and receive guidance throughout their journey as contributors. Subcommunities can create a more collaborative environment where users feel a sense of belonging and responsibility to contribute, aligning with the bonds-based commitment theory.

Subcommunities can also be an opportunity for experienced editors or community experts to become moderators based on their contributions. Moderators can curate lists of stub articles within the categories and provide guidance and support to newcomers. By awarding badges and status based on their contributions, Wikipedia is recognizing their expertise and commitment to the growth of the community. This aligns with attempts to increase early adopter benefits, as early joiners are rewarded with status, influence, positions of power within the community.

By implementing these strategies, Wikipedia can improve the newcomer experience and foster a stronger sense of community among users. By streamlining the onboarding process, creating niche subcommunity pages, and rewarding experienced contributors, they will be able to attract new contributors and create a sustainable platform of knowledge-sharing and collaboration.