The Reinforcing Mechanism of Sustaining Participations in Open Source Software Developers: Based on Social Identity Theory and Organizational Citizenship Behavior Theory*
Junghong Choi, JooHee Choi, Hye Sun Lee, Hwan Hwangbo, Inseong Lee, Jinwoo Kim · Asia Pacific Journal of Information Systems · 2013
Open Source Software Development (OSSD) differentiates itself from traditional closed software development in that it reveals its source codes online and allows anyone to participate in projects. Even though its success was in doubt, many of the open collaborative working models produced successful results. Academia started to get interested in how developers are willing to participate even when there are no extrinsic rewards for their efforts. Many studies tried to explain developers' motivations, and the pursuit of ideology, reputation, and altruism are found to be the answers. Those studies, howeve r, focused mostly on how the first contribution is made out of a certain motivation. Nowadays, OSSD reaches at its maturity and 70% of professional developers have used or utilized open source software or code in their works. As the proportion of people experiencing OSS, the accounts from previous studies are expected to be weakened. Also, extant literature fails to explain how the motivation of participating in OSS evolves over time and experiences. Given that changing over time or over experiences is the natural in the perception of motivation, studies in an attempt to understand how the motivation changes or evolves are in need. In this study, we aimed to explain how the perception about OSS from past usage or related experiences leads to the intention to sustain OSS participations. By doing so, we try to bridge the gap between previous