Abstract
Wikipedia is one of the most successful online communities in history, yet it struggles to attract and retain women editors—a phenomenon known as the gender gap. We investigate this gap by focusing on the voices of experienced women Wikipedians. In this interview-based study (N=25), we identify a core theme among these voices: safety. We reveal how our participants perceive safety within their community, how they manage their safety both conceptually and physically, and how they act on this understanding to create safe spaces on and off Wikipedia. Our analysis shows Wikipedia functions as both a multidimensional and porous space encompassing a spectrum of safety. Navigating this space requires these women to employ sophisticated tactics related to identity management, boundary management, and emotion work. We conclude with a set of provocations to spur the design of future online environments that encourage equity, inclusivity, and safety for historically marginalized users.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | CHI 2019 - Proceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems |
| Publisher | Association for Computing Machinery |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9781450359702 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 2 2019 |
| Event | 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI 2019 - Glasgow, United Kingdom Duration: May 4 2019 → May 9 2019 |
Publication series
| Name | Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings |
|---|
Conference
| Conference | 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI 2019 |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| City | Glasgow |
| Period | 5/4/19 → 5/9/19 |
Keywords
- Gender gap
- Online communities
- Participation
- Safe spaces
- Safety
- Wikipedia
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Human-Computer Interaction
- Computer Graphics and Computer-Aided Design
- Software
Cite this
People who can take it how women wikipedians negotiate and navigate safety. / Menking, Amanda; Erickson, Ingrid; Pratt, Wanda.
CHI 2019 - Proceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. Association for Computing Machinery, 2019. (Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings).Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution
}
TY - GEN
T1 - People who can take it how women wikipedians negotiate and navigate safety
AU - Menking, Amanda
AU - Erickson, Ingrid
AU - Pratt, Wanda
PY - 2019/5/2
Y1 - 2019/5/2
N2 - Wikipedia is one of the most successful online communities in history, yet it struggles to attract and retain women editors—a phenomenon known as the gender gap. We investigate this gap by focusing on the voices of experienced women Wikipedians. In this interview-based study (N=25), we identify a core theme among these voices: safety. We reveal how our participants perceive safety within their community, how they manage their safety both conceptually and physically, and how they act on this understanding to create safe spaces on and off Wikipedia. Our analysis shows Wikipedia functions as both a multidimensional and porous space encompassing a spectrum of safety. Navigating this space requires these women to employ sophisticated tactics related to identity management, boundary management, and emotion work. We conclude with a set of provocations to spur the design of future online environments that encourage equity, inclusivity, and safety for historically marginalized users.
AB - Wikipedia is one of the most successful online communities in history, yet it struggles to attract and retain women editors—a phenomenon known as the gender gap. We investigate this gap by focusing on the voices of experienced women Wikipedians. In this interview-based study (N=25), we identify a core theme among these voices: safety. We reveal how our participants perceive safety within their community, how they manage their safety both conceptually and physically, and how they act on this understanding to create safe spaces on and off Wikipedia. Our analysis shows Wikipedia functions as both a multidimensional and porous space encompassing a spectrum of safety. Navigating this space requires these women to employ sophisticated tactics related to identity management, boundary management, and emotion work. We conclude with a set of provocations to spur the design of future online environments that encourage equity, inclusivity, and safety for historically marginalized users.
KW - Gender gap
KW - Online communities
KW - Participation
KW - Safe spaces
KW - Safety
KW - Wikipedia
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85067620186&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85067620186&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1145/3290605.3300702
DO - 10.1145/3290605.3300702
M3 - Conference contribution
T3 - Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings
BT - CHI 2019 - Proceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
PB - Association for Computing Machinery
ER -