A (closer) look at collaboration using wikis

Abstract

Purpose -Wikis have been gaining attention in the practitioner and academic literature, suggesting their use as knowledge repositories in organizational environments and even as collaborative tools for reviewing scholarly publications. And yet, little is known about factors that foster or discourage use of this technology. The purpose of this paper is to take a closer look at collaboration using wikis. Design/methodology/approach -The authors look at an academic exercise using wikis in a college classroom to leverage collaboration among students. Taking elements from similar artifacts such as groupware technology, this research evaluates a model that explores the significance of perceptions of complexity and critical mass on wiki adoption. Findings -Results show a strong acceptance of wikis among students despite not being familiar with this type of technology. Furthermore, outcomes show that students were influenced by the actions taken collectively by their peers, resulting in improved collaboration and participation. Originality/value -The paper offers new insights into the subject of collaboration using wikis.

Active learning interventions and student perceptions

“…Cinnamon et al (2010) write: "The frequent use of small groups in institutions of higher education is not surprising given the empirical and theoretical research that overwhelmingly supports the worth of active engagement for increased learning and development of higher-order cognitive skills" (p. 10). Furthermore, collaboration (what is called association in this section's subtitle) has been shown to be an aid to learning, insofar as social connections can motivate learners to learn (Hall and Buzwell, 2013;Hung and Yuen, 2010;King and Sen, 2013;Summers and Svinicki, 2007;Vasquez and Potter, 2013). Mauri et al (2014) have, likewise, shown collaborative writing to be positively associated with authentic learning.…”

The acceptance of corporate wiki use for knowledge diffusion purposes

“…A related concept is the perceived ease of use of an IS, which is considered the opposite of IS complexity (Thompson et al , 1991) and has been widely studied (Venkatesh and Bala, 2008). According to Vasquez and Potter (2013), “If perceiving a [wiki] technology as easy to use tends to foster adoption, then complexity will discourage users to adopt this technology” (p. 148).…”