The dual network structure of organizational problem solving: A case study on open source software development
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Conaldi, Guido 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3552-7307 and Lomi, Alessandro
(2013)
The dual network structure of organizational problem solving: A case study on open source software development.
Social Networks, 35 (2).
pp. 237-250.
ISSN 0378-8733
(doi:10.1016/j.socnet.2012.12.003)
Abstract
We reconstruct the dual network structure generated by the association between 72 contributors and 737 software bugs engaged during a full development cycle of the free/open source software project Epiphany. Estimates of structural parameters of Exponential Random Graph Models for two-mode networks reveal the structural logics shaping activities of collaborative problem solving. After controlling for contributor specific and software bug-specific characteristics, we find that contributors (“problem solvers”) tend to distribute their activity over multiple software bugs. At the same time, however, we find that software bugs (“problems”) tend not to share multiple contributors. This dual tendency toward de-specialization and exclusivity is sustained by specific local network dependencies revealed by our analysis which also suggests possible organizational mechanisms that may be underlying the puzzling macro-structural regularities frequently observed, but rarely explained, in the production of open source software. By combining these mechanisms with the influence of contributors characterized by different levels of involvement in the project, we provide micro-level evidence of structural interdependence between “core” and “peripheral” members identified exclusively on the basis of their individual level of contribution to the project.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | [1] Published in print: May 2013. [2] Published as: Social Networks, (2013), Vol. 35, (2), pp. 237–250. |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | two mode networks, exponential random graphs, free/open source software, organizational problem solving |
| Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > HD28 Management. Industrial Management Q Science > QA Mathematics > QA76 Computer software |
| Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group: | Faculty of Business > Networks and Urban Systems Centre (NUSC) > Centre for Business Network Analysis (CBNA) Faculty of Business > Department of Systems Management & Strategy |
| Related URLs: | |
| Last Modified: | 04 Mar 2019 16:48 |
| URI: | http://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/8952 |
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