Distributed Apprenticeship in Online Communities

Abstract

Supporting learning in online communities is an important direction for the future of human–computer interaction as people increasingly leverage social technologies to support professional growth and development. However, few have studied how people leverage the socio-technical affordances of online informal workplace communities to develop professional skills in the absence of dedicated expert guidance. We draw from theories of apprenticeship to introduce an emergent theory of distributed apprenticeship, which outlines how community expectations of transparency and mutual support allow for instruction to be directed by a distributed network of nonexperts. We develop distributed apprenticeship through a qualitative study of crowdfunding entrepreneurs, where novices leverage social interactions with community members to develop a wide range of entrepreneurial skills. We then generalize distributed apprenticeship to other workplace contexts and provide design implications for online communities where people develop professional skills with minimal dedicated formal guidance.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supportedby the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.

Notes on contributors

Julie S. Hui

Julie S. Hui ([email protected], juliehui.com) is a design researcher with an interest in understanding and developing social technologies that support novice innovators. She recently completed her Ph.D. at Northwestern University’s Segal Design Institute and is now a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Michigan School of Information.

Matthew W. Easterday ([email protected], matteasterday.com) is a learning scientist with an interest in online project-based learning platforms for social innovators; he is an assistant professor in the Department of Learning Sciences of Northwestern University.

Elizabeth M. Gerber ([email protected], lizgerber.com) is a researcher and designer with an interest in technology, organization, and innovation; she is an associate professor in the Segal Design Institute of Northwestern University.