Comments on: How long do (should) online communities live? http://selberg.org/2007/03/05/how-long-do-should-online-communities-live/ Erik Selberg's Homepage & Blog Sun, 23 Nov 2008 13:27:50 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Erik Selberg http://selberg.org/2007/03/05/how-long-do-should-online-communities-live/#comment-5367 Erik Selberg Wed, 07 Mar 2007 02:32:49 +0000 http://selberg.org/2007/03/05/how-long-do-should-online-communities-live/#comment-5367 Well, certainly, this is the messy world of social science. But it's also intersecting with good ol' fashioned technology, which potentially changes the game. I don't buy that there is so much complexity there can't be an answer... I would buy that my question is so vague that it needs to be chopped up and refined so that there can be appropriate answers. So, let me refine my question. For an online community, what separates communities that live to N + 1 years from those that only live N years, for N > 0? Well, certainly, this is the messy world of social science. But it’s also intersecting with good ol’ fashioned technology, which potentially changes the game. I don’t buy that there is so much complexity there can’t be an answer… I would buy that my question is so vague that it needs to be chopped up and refined so that there can be appropriate answers.

So, let me refine my question. For an online community, what separates communities that live to N + 1 years from those that only live N years, for N > 0?

]]> By: Greg Linden http://selberg.org/2007/03/05/how-long-do-should-online-communities-live/#comment-5336 Greg Linden Wed, 07 Mar 2007 00:14:58 +0000 http://selberg.org/2007/03/05/how-long-do-should-online-communities-live/#comment-5336 Hey, Erik. I think you are beginning to enter the messy realm of the social sciences here. An only slightly broader version of your question is, "What incentives and institutions discourage conflict, encourage cooperation, and promote stability in large groups?" That question is the one many of our friends in the social sciences spend much of their time on. Unfortunately, that may mean that you are not going to get an answer to your question. There is so much complexity and so many factors in these large scale social systems that it appears to be nearly impossible to come up with broad, useful, and reliable predictions. Hey, Erik. I think you are beginning to enter the messy realm of the social sciences here.

An only slightly broader version of your question is, “What incentives and institutions discourage conflict, encourage cooperation, and promote stability in large groups?” That question is the one many of our friends in the social sciences spend much of their time on.

Unfortunately, that may mean that you are not going to get an answer to your question. There is so much complexity and so many factors in these large scale social systems that it appears to be nearly impossible to come up with broad, useful, and reliable predictions.

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