Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Sustainable virtual communities: suggestions from the colonial model

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Information Systems and e-Business Management Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

While virtual community research has contributed to the understanding of the virtual community sustainability, a need for a systematic model exists. In this paper, we propose a model of sustainable virtual communities based on the sustainability properties of animal colonies in nature. The premise of our model is that if we manage to replicate the sustainability properties of colonial systems in virtual communities, they can become longer lasting. We also present the results of an exploratory case study. The study shows that colonial properties form a construct that predicts member perceptions of their community being sustainable. While our primary objective is the conceptual introduction of the colonial principles of sustainability, the case study provides some early indications that these principles may help design systems that can bind virtual communities more permanently.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Exceptions include empirical studies by Ostrom (1990), Markus et al. (2000) and Butler (2001).

  2. Chidambaram (1996) study of students over a 4-week period using Group Support Systems showed this time frame did allow for attitudes and perceptions to shift and stabilize.

References

  • Abbot A (1988) The system of professions: an essay on the division of expert labor. University of Chicago Press, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Ahuja MK, Carley KM (1998) Network structure in virtual organizations. J Comput Med Commun 3(4). http://www.ascusc.org/jcmc/vol3/issue4/ahuja.html

  • Ahuja M, Carley K (1999) Network structure in virtual organizations. Organ Sci 10(6):741–747

    Google Scholar 

  • Ajzen I, Fishbein M (1980) Understanding attitudes and predicting social behavior. Prentice-Hall, Englewood-Cliffs

    Google Scholar 

  • Barclay D, Higgins C, Thompson R (1995) The partial least squares (PLS) approach to causal modeling: personal computer adoption and use as an illustration (with commentaries). Technol Stud 2(2):285–324

    Google Scholar 

  • Bender T (1978) Community and social change in America. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick

    Google Scholar 

  • Bishop AP (2000) Communities for the new century. J Adolesc Adult Lit 43(5):472–478

    Google Scholar 

  • Boland RJ Jr, Tenkasi RV (1995) Perspective making and perspective taking in communities of knowing. Organ Sci 6(4):350–372

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown JS (1998) Internet technology in support of the concept of ‘communities-of-practice’: the case of xerox. Account Manag Inf Technol 8:227–236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown JS, Duguid P (1991) Organizational learning and communities-of-practice: toward a unified view of working, learning, and innovation. Organ Sci 2(1):40–57

    Google Scholar 

  • Butler B (2001) Membership size, communication activity, and sustainability: a resource-based model of online social structures. Inf Syst Res 12(4):346–362

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chidambaram L (1966) Relational development in computer-supported groups. MIS Q 20:143–165

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chin WW (1998a) The partial least squares approach for structural equation modeling. In: Marcoulides GA (ed) Modern methods for business research. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hillsdale, pp 295–335

    Google Scholar 

  • Chin WW (1998b) Issues and opinion on structural equation modeling. MIS Q 22:VII–XVI

    Google Scholar 

  • Chin WW, Salisbury WD, Pearson AW, Stollak MJ (1999) Perceived cohesion in small groups: adapting and testing the perceived cohesion scale in a small group setting. Small Group Res 30(6):751–766

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chin WW, Newsted PR (1999) Structural equation modeling analysis with small samples using partial least squares. In: Hoyle RH (ed) Statistical strategies for small sample research. Sage, Thousand Oaks, pp 309–341

    Google Scholar 

  • Constant D, Sproull L, Kiesler S (1996) The kindness of strangers: the usefulness of electronic weak ties for technical advice. Organ Sci 7:119–135

    Google Scholar 

  • Darwin C (1845) The voyage of the Beagle, 2nd edn. John Murray, London

    Google Scholar 

  • DeSanctis G, Monge P (1999) Introduction to the special issue: communication processes for virtual organizations. Organ Sci 10(6):693–703

    Google Scholar 

  • Dott RH, Batten RL (1988) Evolution of the Earth, 4th edn. McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Eldredge N, Gould SJ (1972) Punctuated equilibrium: an alternative to phyletic gradualism. In: Schopf TJM (ed) Models in palaeobiology. Freeman, Cooper & Co, San Fracisco, pp 82–115

    Google Scholar 

  • Erickson T (1997) Social interaction on the net: virtual community as participatory genre. In: Proceedings of the 30th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, pp 13–21

  • Erickson T (1999a) Rhyme and punishment: the creation and enforcement of conventions in an online participatory limerick genre. In: Proceedings of the 32nd Hawaii international conference on system sciences, pp 1–10

  • Erickson T (1999b) Persistent conversation: discourse as document. In: Proceedings of the 32nd Hawaii international conference on system sciences, pp 1–2

  • Etzioni A (ed) (1995) New communitarian thinking—persons, virtues, institutions, and communities. University Press of Virginia, Charlottesville

    Google Scholar 

  • Etzioni A, Etzioni O (1999) Face-to-face and computer-mediated communities. A comparative analysis. Inf Soc 15(4):241–248

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fernback J, Thompson B (1995) [(HTML-Index 2)] Virtual communities: Abort, retry, failure? Originally presented as Computer mediated communication and the American collectivity: the dimensions of a community within cyberspace at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Albuquerque, New Mexico. Available: http://www.well.com/user/hlr/texts/VCcivil.html

  • Finholt T, Sproull L (1990) Electronic groups at work. Organ Sci 1:41–64

    Google Scholar 

  • Fornell C, Larcker D (1981) Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. J Mark Res 18:39–50

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furlong MS (1995) An electronic community for older adults: the SeniorNetnet work. J Commun 39(3):145–153

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furst S, Blackburn R, Rosen B (1999) Virtual team effectiveness: a proposed research agenda. Inf Syst J 9:249–269

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • George JF, Iacono S, Kling R (1995) Learning in context: extensively computerized work groups as communities-of-practice. Account Manag Inf Technol 5(3/4):185–202

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Green SG, Taber TD (1980) The effects of three social decision schemes on decision group process. Organ Behav Hum Perform 25:97–106

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grant RM (1996) Toward a knowledge-based theory of the firm. Strateg Manag J 17:109–122

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hagel J III, Armstrong AG (1997) Net gain expanding markets through virtual communities. Harvard Business School Press. Boston

    Google Scholar 

  • Hagel J III, Armstrong AG (2000) The operational performance of virtual communities—towards a successful business model

  • Heidegger M (1962) Being and time. Harper & Row, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Hiltz SR (1985) Online communities: a case study of the Of.ce of the future. Ablex Publishing, Norwood

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoyle RH, Crawford AM (1994) Use of individual-level data to investigate group phenomena, issues and strategies. Small Group Res 25:464–485

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jarvenpaa S, Knoll K, Leidner D (1998) Is anybody out there? Antecedents of trust in global virtual teams. J Manag Inf Syst 14(4):29–64

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones Q (1997) Virtual communities, virtual-settlements and cyber-archeology: a theoretical outline. J Comput Med Commun 3(3). http://www.ascusc.org/jcrnc/vol3/issue3/jones.html

  • Jones Q (2000) Time to split, virtually: expanding virtual publics into vibrant virtual metropolises. In: Proceedings of the 33rd Hawaii international conference on system sciences

  • Jones Q, Rafaeli S (2000) What do virtual “Tells” tell? Placing cybersociety research into a hierarchy of social explanation. In: Proceedings of the 33rd Hawaii international conference on system sciences

  • Joreskog KG, Wold H (1982) Systems under indirect observation—causality structure prediction. North Holland Publishing, Amsterdam

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaufer DS, Carley KM (1993) Communication at a distance: the influence of print on sociocultural organization and change. Lawrence Erlbaum, Hillsdale

    Google Scholar 

  • King S (1994) Analysis of electronic support groups for recovering addicts. Interpersonal Comput Tech 2(3):47–56

    Google Scholar 

  • Kollock P (1999) The economies of on-line co-operation—gifts and public goods in cyberspace. In: Smith MA, Kollock P (eds) Communities in cyberspace. Routledge, New York, pp 220–239

    Google Scholar 

  • Lave J (1991) Situating learning in communities of practice. In: Resnick LB, Levine JM, Teasley SD (eds) Perspectives on socially shared cognition. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, pp 63–82

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Markus L, Manville B, Agres CE (2000) What makes a virtual organization work? Sloan Manag Rev 42(1):13–14

    Google Scholar 

  • McClelland DC (1985) How motives, skills, and values determine what people do. Am Psychol 40:812–825

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCormick NB, McCormick JW (1992) Computer friends and foes: content of undergraduates’ electronic mail. Comput Hum Behav 8:379–405

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDermott R (1999) Why information technology inspired but cannot deliver knowledge management. Calif Manag Rev 41(4):103–117

    Google Scholar 

  • Menon GM (1998) Gender encounters in a virtual community: identity formation and acceptance. Comput Hum Serv 15(1):55–69

    Google Scholar 

  • Moreland RL, Levine JM (1982) Socialization in small groups: temporal changes in individual-group interactions. In: Berkowitz L (ed) Advances in experimental social psychology. Academic Press, New York 15:137–192

  • Nonaka I (1991) The knowledge creating company. Harv Bus Rev 2(9):96–104

    Google Scholar 

  • Nonaka I (1994) A dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation. Organ sci 5(1):14–37

    Google Scholar 

  • Nonaka I, Takeuchi H (1995) The knowledge creating company: how Japanese companies create the dynamics of innovation. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Ogan C (1993) Listserver communication during the Gulf War: what kind of medium is the Bulletin Board? J Broadcast Electronic Media 37(2):177–196

    Google Scholar 

  • Orr J (1996) Talking about machines: an ethnography of a modern job. ILR Press, Ithaca

    Google Scholar 

  • Ostrom E (1990) Governing the commons: the evolution of institutions for collective action. Cambridge University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Polanyi M (1962) Personal knowledge: towards a post-critical philosophy. Harper & Row, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Porra J (1996) Colonial systems, information colonies and punctuated prototyping. Jyvaskyla studies in computer science, economics and statistics, 33. University of Jyvaskyla Press, Jyvaskyla

  • Porra J (1999) Colonial systems. Inf Syst Res 10(1):38–69

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Porra J (2000) Electronic commerce internet strategies and business models—a survey. Inf Syst Front 1(4):389–399

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rae L (1998) Knowledge sharing and the virtual organization: meeting 21st century challenges. Thunderbird Int Bus Rev 40(5):525–540

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rheingold H (1993) The virtual community: homesteading on the electronic frontier. Addison-Wesley, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Rice RE (1982) Communication networking in computer conferencing systems: a longitudinal study of group roles and system structure. In: Burgoon M (ed) Communication yearbook, vol 6. Sage, Beverly Hills, pp 925–944

  • Rice RE, Love G (1987) Electronic emotion: socio-emotional content in a computer-mediated communication network. Commun Res 14(1):85–108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts TL (1998) Are newsgroups virtual communities? In: Proceedings of CHI’98, Los Angeles, April 18–23

  • Robey D, Khoo HM, Powers C (1999) Situated learning in cross-functional virtual teams. Tech Commun 43:51–66

    Google Scholar 

  • Robey D, Khoo HM, Powers C (2000) Situated learning in cross-functional virtual teams. IEEE Trans Prof Commun 43(1):51–66

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rubenstein CM, Shaver P (1980) Loneliness in two northeastern cities. In: Hartog J, Audy R (eds) The anatomy of loneliness. International Universities Press, New York, pp 319–337

    Google Scholar 

  • Salisbury WD, Gopal A, Chin WW (1995) Advancing the theory of adaptive structuration: an instrument to capture faithfulness of appropriation in a group support system. In: Administrative Sciences Association of Canada—23rd Conference, IS Proceedings

  • Schopf TJM (ed) (1972) Models in paleobiology. Freeman Cooper & Co, San Francisco

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott J (2000) Facilitating interorganizational learning with information technology. J Manag Inf Syst Fall 17(2):81–113

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith MA, Kollock P (eds) (1999) Communities in cyberspace. Routledge, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Spender J (1996) Making knowledge the basis of a dynamic theory of the firm. Strateg Manag J 17:45–62

    Google Scholar 

  • Stacey M (1974) The myth of community studies. In: Bell C, Newby H (eds) The sociology of community. Frank Cass and Company Ltd, London, pp 13–26

    Google Scholar 

  • Sundstrom E, DeMeuse KP, Futrell D (1990) Work teams: applications and effectiveness. Am Psychol 45:120–133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Toomey L, Mark G, Tang JC, Adams L (1998) Designing virtual communities for work—CSCW’98 Workshop Report, SIGGROUP Bulletin 3:6–18

  • Walther JB (1994) Anticipated ongoing interaction vs channel effects on relational communication in computer-mediated interaction. Hum Commun Res 20(4):473–501

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walther JB (1996) Computer-mediated communication: impersonal, interpersonal, and hyperpersonal interaction. Commun Res 23(1):3–43

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ward KJ (1999) Cyber-ethnoggraphy and the emergence of the virtually new community. J Inf Technol 14:95–105

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wasko MM, Faraj S (2000) It is what one does: why people participate and help others in electronic communities of practice. J Strateg Inf Syst 9(2–3):155–173

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wellman B (1995) Lay referral networks: using conventional medicine and alternative therapies for low back pain. Soc Health Care 12:213–238

    Google Scholar 

  • Wellman B, Gulia M (1999) Virtual communities as communities: net surfers. In: Smith MA, Kollock P (eds) Communities in cyberspace. Routledge, New York, pp 167–194

    Google Scholar 

  • Wellman B, Whortley S (1989) Brothers’ keepers: situating kinship relations in broader networked of social support. Sociol Perspect 32:273–306

    Google Scholar 

  • Wellman B, Whortley S (1990) Different strokes from different folks: community ties and social support. Am J Soc 96:558–588

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wenger E (1998) Communities of practice. Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Whittaker S (1996) Talking to strangers: an evaluation of factors affecting electronic collaboration. In: Proceedings of CSCW’96 Boston, November 16–20

  • Wilson EO (1975) Sociobiology—the new synthesis. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Winter DG (1973) The power motive. Free Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We wish to thank Wynne Chin, Blake Ives and Sirkka Jarvenpaa for their invaluable feedback during the various phases of the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. C.T. Bauer College of Business Department of Decision and Information Sciences Melcher Hall 280G, University of Houston, Houston, TX, 77204-6282, USA

    Jaana Porra

  2. C.T. Bauer College of Business Department of Decision and Information Sciences Melcher Hall 280E, University of Houston, Houston, TX, 77204-6282, USA

    Michael S. Parks

Authors
  1. Jaana Porra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Michael S. Parks
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jaana Porra.

Appendices

Appendices

Table 2 Reflective and single item measures
Full size table
Table 3 Formative item measures
Full size table
Table 4 Correlations among multi-reflective item constructs (with the square root of the AVE in diagonals)
Full size table
Table 5 Test of discriminant validity—loadings and cross loadings for multi-reflective item constructs
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Porra, J., Parks, M.S. Sustainable virtual communities: suggestions from the colonial model. ISeB 4, 309–341 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10257-005-0002-9

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10257-005-0002-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation