Beyond Information: Developing the Relationship between the Individual and the Group in Online Communities

Online communities are increasingly important for both the businesses and the general public that uses them. However, current IS research on online communities has a limited view of these groups, treating them primarily as information repositories, where people participate by seeking or contributing knowledge. This paper argues that online communities are also social systems with which people form relationships and repeatedly interact over time. This paper proposes a relational model of online communities that emphasizes the social, bi-directional, and dynamic nature of the interactions in online communities and the way that these interactions build and maintain the relationship between individuals and the community. Hypotheses derived from the relational model are tested by examining the 22-month history of 28,869 newcomers who initially posted to 98 Usenet groups between May 15, 2003, and February 23, 2005. First, taking the newcomers’ point of view, we examine how the community’s response to their posts influences their subsequent participation in the community. Then, taking the community’s point of view, we examine how the nature of individual members’ participation in the community influences the community’s willingness to interact with them. Consistent with the relational model, the results show that the social nature of interactions, including the social status of the repliers and the use of welcoming, inclusive language in community responses, facilitates the development of the relationship between newcomers and the community. Similarly, newcomers’ prior experience in replying to messages and their use of self-introductions in initial messages, signaling connection to the group, increase the community’s willingness to maintain a relationship with them. The findings hold implications for online community researchers and practitioners interested in fostering member engagement. We suggest applying a relational model to studying not only online communities, but also information systems that are increasingly social in nature.