@proceedings {2023,
	title = {Design principles for background knowledge to enhance learning in citizen science},
	year = {2023},
	pages = {563{\textendash}580},
	address = {Barcelona, Spain and virtual},
	abstract = {<p>Citizen scientists make valuable contributions to science but need to learn about the data they are working with to be able to perform more advanced tasks. We present a set of design principles for identifying the kinds of background knowledge that are important to support learning at different stages of engagement, drawn from a study of how free/libre open source software developers are guided to create and use documents. Specifically, we suggest that newcomers require help understanding the purpose, form and content of the documents they engage with, while more advanced developers add understanding of information provenance and the boundaries, relevant participants and work processes. We apply those principles in two separate but related studies. In study 1, we analyze the background knowledge presented to volunteers in the Gravity Spy citizen-science project, mapping the resources to the framework and identifying kinds of knowledge that were not initially provided. In study 2, we use the principles proactively to develop design suggestions for Gravity Spy 2.0, which will involve volunteers in analyzing more diverse sources of data. This new project extends the application of the principles by seeking to use them to support understanding of the relationships between documents, not just the documents individually. We conclude by discussing future work, including a planned evaluation of Gravity Spy 2.0 that will provide a further test of the design principles.</p>},
	doi = {10.1007/978-3-031-28032-0_43},
	attachments = {https://crowston.syr.edu./sites/crowston.syr.edu/files/Design_Background_iConf.pdf},
	author = {Kevin Crowston and Corey Brian Jackson and Isabella Corieri and Carsten {\O}sterlund}
}
@article {9999,
	title = {Documentation and Access to Knowledge in Online Communities:  Know Your Audience and Write Appropriately?},
	journal = {Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology},
	volume = {70},
	year = {2019},
	pages = {619{\textendash}633},
	abstract = {Virtual collaborations bring together people who must work together despite having varied access to and understanding of the work at hand. In many cases, the collaboration is technology supported, meaning that the work is done through shared documents of various kinds. We develop a framework articulating the characteristics of documents supporting collaborators with asymmetric access to knowledge versus those with symmetric access to knowledge. Drawing on theories about document genre, boundary objects, and provenance, we hypothesize that documents supporting asymmetric collaborators are likely to articulate or prescribe their own (1) purpose, (2) context of use, (3) content and form, and (4) provenance in greater detail than documents supporting symmetric collaborators. We explore these hypotheses through content analysis of documents and instructions from a variety of free/libre open source projects (FLOSS). We present findings consistent with the hypotheses developed as well as results extending beyond our theory-derived assumptions. As participants gradually gain access to knowledge, the study suggests, prescriptions about the content of documents become less important compared to prescriptions about the context, provenance, and process of work. The study suggests new directions for research on communications in virtual collaborations, as well as advice for those supporting such collaborations. },
	doi = {10.1002/asi.24152},
	attachments = {https://crowston.syr.edu./sites/crowston.syr.edu/files/Osterlund-Crowston_2019_Document\%20and\%20access\%20to\%20knowledge\%20in\%20online\%20communities_JASIST.pdf},
	author = {Carsten {\O}sterlund and Kevin Crowston}
}
@article {2018,
	title = {Did they login? Patterns of anonymous contributions to online communities},
	journal = {Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction},
	volume = {2},
	year = {2018},
	pages = {Article 77},
	abstract = {<p>Researchers studying user behaviors in online communities often conduct analyses of events collected in system logs, e.g., a system{\textquoteright}s record of a comment post or of a contribution. However, analysis of user behaviors is more difficult if users make contributions without being logged-in (i.e., anonymously). Since a user{\textquoteright}s account will not be associated with contributions that user makes anonymously, conclusions about user behaviors that look only at attributed actions might not account for a user{\textquoteright}s full experience. To understand the impacts of anonymous contributions on research, we conducted an analysis of system logs containing anonymous activities in two online citizen science projects. By linking anonymous events with user IDs we found that (1) many users contribute anonymously, though with varied patterns of contribution; and (2) including anonymous activities alter conclusions made about users{\textquoteright} experience with the project. These results suggest that researchers of human behaviors in online communities should consider the possible impacts of anonymous interaction on their ability to draw conclusions about user behaviors in these settings.</p>},
	doi = {10.1145/3274346},
	attachments = {https://crowston.syr.edu./sites/crowston.syr.edu/files/anonymous-contributions-cameraready.pdf},
	author = {Corey Brian Jackson and Kevin Crowston and Carsten {\O}sterlund}
}
