research-article

The work of sustaining order in wikipedia: the banning of a vandal

Authors:

R. Stuart Geiger,

David RibesAuthors Info & Claims

CSCW '10: Proceedings of the 2010 ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work

Pages 117 - 126

https://doi.org/10.1145/1718918.1718941

Published: 06 February 2010 Publication History

Abstract

In this paper, we examine the social roles of software tools in the English-language Wikipedia, specifically focusing on autonomous editing programs and assisted editing tools. This qualitative research builds on recent research in which we quantitatively demonstrate the growing prevalence of such software in recent years. Using trace ethnography, we show how these often-unofficial technologies have fundamentally transformed the nature of editing and administration in Wikipedia. Specifically, we analyze "vandal fighting" as an epistemic process of distributed cognition, highlighting the role of non-human actors in enabling a decentralized activity of collective intelligence. In all, this case shows that software programs are used for more than enforcing policies and standards. These tools enable coordinated yet decentralized action, independent of the specific norms currently in force.

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Cited By

Hwang SKiene COng SShaw A(2024)Adopting Third-party Bots for Managing Online CommunitiesProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36537078:CSCW1(1-26)Online publication date: 26-Apr-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3653707
Kharazian ZStarbird KHill B(2024)Governance Capture in a Self-Governing Community: A Qualitative Comparison of the Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, and Serbo-Croatian WikipediasProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36373388:CSCW1(1-26)Online publication date: 26-Apr-2024
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The work of sustaining order in wikipedia: the banning of a vandal

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cover image ACM Conferences

CSCW '10: Proceedings of the 2010 ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work

February 2010

468 pages

ISBN:9781605587950

DOI:10.1145/1718918

General Chairs:
Kori Inkpen
Microsoft Research, USA
,
Carl Gutwin
University of Saskatchewan, Canada
,
Program Chair:
John Tang
Microsoft Research, USA

Copyright © 2010 ACM.

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Published: 06 February 2010

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https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3653707
Kharazian ZStarbird KHill B(2024)Governance Capture in a Self-Governing Community: A Qualitative Comparison of the Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, and Serbo-Croatian WikipediasProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36373388:CSCW1(1-26)Online publication date: 26-Apr-2024
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https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642278
Wang LVincent NRukanskaitė JZhang A(2024)Pika: Empowering Non-Programmers to Author Executable Governance Policies in Online CommunitiesProceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3642012(1-18)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
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Ajmani LVincent NChancellor S(2023)Peer Produced Friction: How Page Protection on Wikipedia Affects Editor Engagement and ConcentrationProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36101987:CSCW2(1-33)Online publication date: 4-Oct-2023
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Hsieh JKim JDabbish LZhu H(2023)"Nip it in the Bud": Moderation Strategies in Open Source Software Projects and the Role of BotsProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36100927:CSCW2(1-29)Online publication date: 4-Oct-2023
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