Actor Network Theory-based Modeling for Crowdsourced Design Team Formation

Abstract

With crowdsourcing, design activities traditionally performed by a designated agent are outsourced to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call. The quality of crowdsourced ideas and solutions has been discussed, but the idea of crowdsourced design has not been well investigated, especially as it pertains to complex engineering systems. Building a crowdsourced design team is a challenge; various risks are associated with the anonymity of participants involved in product design. Potential contributors must meet formal requirements before they can apply to be part of the design and decision-making team. In this paper, we define the following constructs in the context of crowdsourced design team building based on the concept of translation (from actor network theory): problematization, enrollment, interessement, and mobilization. The process of translation is mapped onto four stages of crowdsourced design team building. We propose three formal measures (i.e., time, reputation, and task fitness) to support the process of building a crowdsourced design team. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed model constructs is discussed in the context of a real crowdsourcing service.