%0 Conference Paper %B Information Systems Research %D 2012 %T The Effects of Diversity in Global, Distributed Collectives: A Study of Open Source Project Success %A Daniel, Sherae L. %A Ritu Agarwal %A Stewart, Katherine J. %K diversity %K global collectives %K open source software %X Diversity is a defining characteristic of global collectives facilitated by the Internet. Though substantial evidence suggests that diversity has profound implications for a variety of outcomes including performance, member engagement, and withdrawal behavior, the effects of diversity have been predominantly investigated in the context of organizational workgroups or virtual teams. We use a diversity lens to study the success of non-traditional virtual work groups exemplified by open source software (OSS) projects. Building on the diversity literature, we propose that three types of diversity (separation, variety and disparity) influence two critical outcomes for OSS projects: community engagement and market success. We draw on the OSS literature to further suggest that the effects of diversity on market success are moderated by the application development stage. We instantiate the operational definitions of three forms of diversity to the unique context of open source projects. Using archival data from 357 projects hosted on SourceForge, we find that disparity diversity, reflecting variation in participants‘ contribution-based reputation, is positively associated with success. The impact of separation diversity, conceptualized as culture and measured as diversity in the spoken language and country of participants, has a negative impact on community engagement but an unexpected positive effect on market success. Variety diversity, reflected in dispersion in project participant roles, positively influences community engagement and market success. The impact of diversity on market success is conditional on the development stage of the project. We discuss how the study‘s findings advance the literature on antecedents of OSS success, expand our theoretical understanding of diversity, and present the practical implications of the results for managers of distributed collectives. %B Information Systems Research %> https://flosshub.org/sites/flosshub.org/files/isr_2012.pdf %0 Conference Proceedings %B IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology 378 (OSS 2012) %D 2012 %T Gender Differences in Early Free and Open Source Software Joining Process %A Kuechler, Victor %A Gilbertson, Claire %A Jensen, Carlos %K buildroot %K busybox %K diversity %K email %K jaws %K joining process %K mailing lists %K parrot %K uClibc %K Yum %X With the growth of free and open source software (FOSS) and the adoption of FOSS solutions in business and everyday life, it is important that projects serve their growingly diverse user base. The sustainability of FOSS projects relies on a constant influx of new contributors. Several large demo- graphic surveys found that FOSS communities are very homogenous, dominated by young men, similar to the bias existing in the rest of the IT workforce. Building on previous research, we examine mailing list subscriptions and posting statistics of female FOSS participants. New participants often experience their first interaction on a FOSS project’s mailing list. We explored six FOSS projects – Buildroot, Busybox, Jaws, Parrot, uClibc, and Yum. We found a declining rate of female participation from the 8.27% of subscribers, to 6.63% of posters, and finally the often reported code contributor rate of 1.5%. We found a disproportionate attrition rate among women along every step of the FOSS joining process. %B IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology 378 (OSS 2012) %I IFIP AICT, Springer %C Eighth International Conference on Open Source Systems (OSS 2012) %V 378 %P 78-93 %8 09/2012