the state of the literature. We develop a framework for organizing the literature based on the input-mediatoroutput-input (IMOI) model from the small groups literature. We present a quantitative summary of articles selected for the review and then discuss findings of this literature categorized into issues pertaining to inputs (e.g., member characteristics, technology use and project characteristics), processes (software development and social processes), emergent states (e.g., trust and task related states) and outputs (e.g. team performance, FLOSS implementation and project evolution). Based on this review, we suggest topics for future research, as well as identifying methodological and theoretical issues for future inquiry in this area, including issues relating to sampling and the need for more longitudinal studies.

The availability of commercial quality, free software products such as the Apache HTTP (web) server or the Linux operating system has focused significant attention on the open source development process by which these products were created. One of the more perplexing aspects of open source software projects is why developers freely devote their time and energy to these projects. While many open source participants cite idealistic motives for participation, Lerner and Tirole (2000) argue that developer participation in open source projects may, in part, be explained by existing economic theory regarding career concerns. This research seeks to confirm or disconfirm the existence of economic returns to participation in open source development. Preliminary results of our empirical investigation suggest that greater open source participation per se, as measured in contributions made, does not lead to wage increases. However, a higher status in a merit-based ranking within the Apache Project does lead to significantly higher wages. This suggests that employers do not reward the gain in experience through open source participation as an increase in human capital. The results are also consistent with the notion that a high rank within the Apache Software Foundation is a credible signal of the productive capacity of a programmer. 1.

In the closing weeks of 2002, video games were featured in various popular American news publications and media outlets such as Wired, Entertainment Weekly, Newsweek and Time Magazine. It is becoming increasingly apparent that video games are no longer child’s play, but rather that they are poised to become a major entertainment form for the twenty-first century. Social analysts and media scholars must begin to formulate an understanding of this emerging mass-consumer phenomenon because it will increasingly impact social and economic structures of post-industrial societies. Part of the tremendous value generated by the American video-game industry is tied into broad global economic shifts that have created a space where services and ephemeral products, such as software, can be created and cheaply distributed. The predominance of ‘high-tech ’ production, the rise of the Internet, and the cultural capital associated with computerization all have contributed to the rise of hobbyist software developers that currently tinker with commercial video games and

Relying on volunteer labor, open source projects like the Apache web server create commercial quality software. Why developers contribute freely without direct remuneration has been widely debated. We offer empirical evidence that such participation can be explained by existing theories in labor economics. Analyzing panel data covering a four-year period, we find that increases in human capital, measured as project contribution, do not lead to increased wages. In contrast, credentials earned through a merit-based ranking system are associated with significantly increased wages. Our results suggest that status within an open source meritocracy operates as a credible signal of productive capacity. * We thank the open source programmers who have contributed to this study. We also thank the participants of the

The Linux kernel development project was among the first attempts that make a deliberate effort to use globally connected software developers as the main source of talent and input to create an important, Open Source software. Based on the Linux project, we have built a model of Open Source knowledge creation to study how thousands of talented volunteers, who are dispersed across organizational and geographical boundaries, collaborate via the Internet to produce a knowledge- intensive product of high quality. Comparing and contrasting the Linux model with the traditional/commercial model of software development, we focus on four issues critical to software development: intellectual property licensing, incentive to contribute, coordination mechanisms, and production process. Recognizing that the applicability of the model may be constrained if business firms do not have the supporting infrastructure and work practices, we propose several areas where the model can be adapted and how the adapted models are useful to business firms. 2 I.

Podolny, and Mikolaj Piskorski also contributed tremendously helpful insights that helped refine the analysis, as did seminar participants at Stanford University. CONSTRAINT AND STATUS ATTAINMENT

Lessons from volunteering and free/libre open source software development for the future of work ∗

If stable status orders emerge within social realms such as the market or community, then it is important for an actor that wishes to establish high status to do so quickly. Social forces immediately begin to work together to establish an actor’s position in the community’s social structure. However, as tenure increases and an actor’s status becomes increasingly taken-forgranted, it becomes difficult for community members to generate mobility outside of their current social strata. Therefore, members of a community who desire high status should work quickly to establish a positive reputation or else run the risk of being cast into an inert low status social position. This paper tests this conjecture within the context of a community of software programmers. The results run counter to the popular notion that an individual, in the functionalist tradition, can proactively self-manage her own career mobility. Rather, the results lie closer to the sociological and structuralist traditions, which suggest that it is the broader community which plays a major role in deciding one’s social position—a judgment that can be made fairly quickly and decisively, in this case. 1 Status Inertia: