Research:Identifying barriers to participation from heavy internet users

Contact

Pablo Cárcamo

University of Chile

---

Research:Projects

This page documents a planned research project.
Information may be incomplete and change before the project starts.

Key Personnel

• Pablo Cárcamo, sociologist from Universidad de Chile

Project Summary

The main goal of this research it's identify the reasons why heavy internet users (people who spend much time in the Internet)don't edit in wikipedia.

This will be a qualitative research, where we will compare different profiles of Internet users and their reasons for not editing. There will be a selection of different profiles according to gender, age and uses of Internet (people who mainly uses Internet to read the news, people that runs a blog or website, people who mainly uses social networks).

If there is interest in the wikimedia research community this could turn into a global project, where we could compare results from different locations.

My hipotesis is that in Chile there are specific reasons for not editing wikipedia, that might be related with the Neoliberal economy.

Methods

It's intended to be a qualitative research, based on focus groups and personal interviews with people that meets the profiles defined previously

Dissemination

All data and reports are meant to be free. The transcriptions of the interviews will be vital to the goal of this becoming a global research.

Wikimedia Policies, Ethics, and Human Subjects Protection

Every interview will begin by expliciting the goals of the research and that everything will be anonymous and the transcriptions will made available for everyone to read.

Benefits for the Wikimedia community

This research goes in line with the strategic priority of wikimedia foundation of increasing participation on the global south.

By understanding the reasons of why people doesn't get involved on editing the wikipedia it will be easier to develop strategies to increase participation on heavy Internet users.

Contacts

This project has been discussed with the local chapter of the wikimedia foundation and they have showed their support