Abstract
Purpose This study aimed at analyzing the factors that induce the intention of contribution by participants in crowdsourcing initiatives. Design/methodology/approach This study is an explanatory investigation using a quantitative approach. In the second stage, an exploratory study was carried out. Data were obtained through online questionnaires available to the contributors of two platforms, and results were obtained from a regression analysis. Findings The results revealed a greater importance given by participants to intrinsic motivational factors (learning, fun and satisfaction) compared with the extrinsic motivational factor (acknowledgment). Monetary rewards proved irrelevant in this process, whereas attitude and self-efficacy proved good predictors of the intention of contribution in crowdsourcing initiatives. Originality/value No study, as far as the authors’ knowledge extends, has been undertaken to understand what motivations are more relevant in the context of crowdsourcing platforms using multiple theories.
Highlights
If for much of the twentieth century, the organizational structure was tightly closed and rigid, today, traditional companies coexist with those of flexible, open and dynamic structure (Chesbrough, 2003)
The results revealed a greater importance given by participants to intrinsic motivational factors compared with the extrinsic motivational factor
Even before the appearance of this term in 2006[2], those were the creators of crowdsourcing, a participatory culture phenomenon that seeks to use the potential of a crowd to create content, generate ideas and contribute to the labor force, generating real benefits for organizations (Brabham, 2013)
Summary
If for much of the twentieth century, the organizational structure was tightly closed and rigid, today, traditional companies coexist with those of flexible, open and dynamic structure (Chesbrough, 2003). The need arises to seek inputs on non-traditional sources: employees, partners, customers, common people. The proven success of open source industry enabled innovative companies such as Crowdsourcing. Threadless (www.threadless.com), InnoCentive (www.innocentive.com) and Topcoder (www.topcoder.com)[1] to see in the people geographically separated but connected through contributors the internet, an opportunity to innovate. Contributors in crowdsourcing initiatives generally do not receive or receive little for their collaboration (Howe, 2008). Diverging drastically from the traditional organizational structure, where money is an important motivational factor, contributors are motivated more by intrinsic motivations that come from carrying out the activity itself than by extrinsic motivations, that depend on external stimuli (Kaufmann et al, 2011; Zheng et al., 2011)
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