Users feel more inclined to post when they're part of a group because they want to not let the other members down

This also helps boost the users self esteem

Self Identity Theory

-The study and research results yielded that efficacy is the most important factor

-Communities are generally more healthy when members are able to gain benefits from contributing 

Study And Research Results 

Users might be more inclined to contribute if they're building meaningful relationships

Social Capital as a Motivation Of Contribution In Online Communities

An academic article on online communities through a behavioral economics lens 

Kenyon College

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Committed members of an online community are more likely to provide meaningful content valued by other users. Commitment also serves as an essential foundation for behavior regulation. Different types of commitment (e.g., affective, need-based, and normative) can be cultivated within online communities, and the optimal type to encourage depends on the specific vision and goals of the community.

Encouraging Commitment to Online Communities

Youcheng, Wang, and D. R. Fesenmaier. “Assessing Motivation of Contribution in Online Communities: An Empirical Investigation of an Online Travel Community.” Electronic Markets, vol. 13, no. 1, 2003, pp. 33–45., doi:10.1080/1019678032000052934. 

Assessing Motivation of Contribution in Online Communities: An Empirical Investigation of an Online Travel Community

- The feeling of being part of the community and helping fulfill its mission

- This type of commitment is more effective at keeping people in the community. This is because the people are committed to the community itself and not so much the individual members.

Identity-Based Affective Commitment

- Members feel close to the other individual members of the group, as opposed to the community as a whole

- This type of commitment is more susceptible to member turnover


Interpersonal-Based Affective Commitment

This type of commitment is based on the benefits one will receive from being part of a specific community

Need-based Commitment 

- Members feel a need to serve the community “based on feelings of rightness or obligations to the group”

- Members feel a need to be loyal and act on its behalf

Learn Before

Related

Learn After