Preventing Conflicts in Sharing Communities as a Means of Promoting Sustainability

Abstract

Abstract:The sharing economy is a new promising trend with many positive outcomes on society and the environment, as it provides potential for sustainable solutions due to the reduction of resource consumption and less waste. However, research and practice show that sharing comes with its own share of problems. People often act selfishly, and in worst-case scenarios try to take advantage of others without contributing to the shared good. To achieve the higher goal of sustainability, it is important that conflicts in the sharing economy are prevented, and a setting is achieved that allows people to easily behave in a cooperative and sustainable way. The present research examines which conflicts emerge in sharing communities (study 1) and community gardens in particular (study 2), and whether regulation can prevent conflicts in large groups. Two exploratory studies were conducted. First, a qualitative study with consumers and non-consumers of the sharing economy revealed that regulatory systems are perceived as important for preventing the exploitation of other community members, but also that cooperation should not be enforced with strict controls and punishment. Rather, problems should be discussed in a democratic group setting, rules and goals should be set up together, and trust should be built. Second, a questionnaire study with community gardeners in Austria confirmed these results, and showed that trust is related to less conflict in community gardens, while harsh forms of regulation are related to a potential for greater conflict. Additionally, the results indicate that soft forms of regulation are related to fewer relationship and task conflicts, better conflict resolutions, a high sense of community, and greater trust in the community. We then discuss how these findings can be used to regulate sharing economy activities and give limitations and directions for future studies.

How Is Motivation Generated in Collaborative Consumption: Mediation Effect in Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation

“…For the sense of belonging, enterprises should be committed to building communities to satisfy users' social relationship needs. Sabitzer et al [35] found communities should reduce conflicts through soft regulation to promoting sustainability in sharing economy. Community managers can encourage community members to cooperate with each other through physical rewards, virtual points, level promotion, etc., or interact with community users online or offline, so that users can feel that they are members of a product or service community, thereby increasing pleasure and intention to participate.…”

Research directions for sharing economy issues

“…risky and more appealing because they source information on users via the use of ratings and reputations." Sabitzer et al (2018) pointed out that sharing involves many problems concerning people acting with self-interest as opposed to their approach based on goodwill toward their community. It further must have participants who do not take advantage of others without contributing to the shared good.…”

The Influence of Regulation on Trust and Risk Preference in Sharing Communities

“…Harsh regulation is often perceived as being part of the access economy, while soft regulation is perceived as equally high in the access, platform, and community-based economies (Hofmann et al, 2017b). Research also indicates that regulation in sharing communities is important but also that strict regulation should only be applied in severe cases, for example, if a member intentionally harms the community, such as through stealing or damaging something (Sabitzer et al, 2018). Too much use of harsh regulation might give the impression that others are not sticking to the rules, thereby diminishing trust in other members (Mulder et al, 2006).…”

“…Regulation seems to be a key factor to prevent negative outcomes, which can be used as a guide to help members to behave properly in different situations. Further, some recent studies on sharing communities found that regulation is significantly related to trust (Sabitzer et al, 2018) and research on tax compliance showed that trust in the tax authority is related to regulation (Hofmann et al, 2017a). Therefore, we assume that regulation is a trust-building measure; first, it enhances trust, and in turn, people perceive participation as less risky, leading them to join the community.…”

“…Lowndes et al, 2006), conflicts (cf. Sabitzer et al, 2018), and distrust and low cooperation of community members (cf. Hartl et al, 2016).…”