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Learning with Comments: an Analysis of Comments and Community on Stack Overflow

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Learning with Comments: an Analysis of Comments and Community on Stack Overflow Proceedings of the 53rd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences | 2020 Learning with comments: An analysis of comments and community on Stack Overflow Subhasree Sengupta Caroline Haythornthwaite Syracuse University Syracuse University [email protected] [email protected] Abstract Engagement on SO is an example of ‘learning in the wild’ [20], i.e., an informal and non-formal self- Stack Overflow (SO) has become a primary source organizing learning environment where crowds of for learning, how to code, with community features participants ask, answer, comment, correct, argue, and supporting asking and answering questions, upvoting to make the effort to present information in informed and signify approval of content, and comments to extend accessible ways, while also monitoring content, value, questions and answers. While past research has and appropriate behavior. While based on crowd considered the value of posts, often based on upvoting, participation, these environments are also communities: little has examined the role of comments. Beyond value epistemic communities, based on a common orientation in explaining code, comments may offer new ways of to a particular knowledge domain [44]; discourse looking at problems, clarifications of questions or communities, understanding and employing particular answers, and socially supportive community language and genre of communication [45]; and interactions. To understand the role of comments, a communities of practice, with common goals and content analysis was conducted to evaluate the key orientations [34]. purposes of comments. A coding schema of nine These knowledge-focused peer production comment categories was developed from open coding on communities engage in continuously emerging a set of 40 posts and used to classify comments in a interpretation, clarification, and explanation of larger dataset of 2323 comments from 50 threads over knowledge, while maintaining a focus on accuracy, a 6-month period. Results provide insight into the way referencing, and the practice of the domain of the comments support learning, knowledge knowledge. For example, in Reddit AskHistorians, development, and the SO community, and the use and contributions are written to meet a general reader’s understanding and provide references as support for usefulness of the comment feature. arguments, and for further reading; learners gain understanding of new areas, and also how the study of history is conducted (historiography) [12]. 1. Introduction In addressing learning in SO, we follow the ‘learning in the wild’ emphasis on analysis of conversation and Stack Overflow (SO) is a highly successful question interaction and how this supports learning and and answer (Q&A) site covering a wide range of topics community. This approach takes, as its starting point the on computer programming. In May 2017, an answer on theoretical perspective of social learning [29, 30], and SO to the question of how many users there are on SO its more recent investigation in online forums as social indicated 829,905 users, of whom 564,682 were learning analytics [31]: registered (i.e., have signed up with SO giving “[T]he focus of social learning analytics is on processes in identifiable user information), 265,189 unregistered, which learners are not solitary, and are not necessarily doing and 32 moderators. Current estimates indicate that users work to be marked, but are engaged in social activity, either interacting directly with others (for example, messaging, on SO have asked 18 million questions, provided 27 friending or following), or using platforms in which their million answers, and 74 million comments (June 4, 2019 activity traces will be experienced by others (for example, on https://data.stackexchange.com/). This makes SO publishing, searching, tagging or rating). smaller than general Q&A forums such as Quora (300 Social Learning Analytics ... draws on the substantial million monthly visitors), or Reddit (542 million body of work demonstrating that new skills and ideas are not monthly visitors; 234 unique visitors), but larger and solely individual achievements, but are developed, carried more diverse than other programming forums. forward, and passed on through interaction and collaboration.” [31, p. 5] URI: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/64096 978-0-9981331-3-3 Page 2898 (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) Interaction builds social networks, and as such this community practice. Privileges also include permission research is also predicated on concepts from social to post to SO chat, add to the community wiki, vote network analysis, and its application to learning posts up or down, flag posts for moderator evaluation, networks [32, 33]. This perspective looks to interactions be named to a site status, and access to moderator and among network members analyzing the way, these analytic tools (https://stackoverflow.com/help/ interactions build social structures that support and privileges). The result is a self-organizing system where sustain the community. This includes structures of recognition of reputation opens doors to further norms and rules, social roles and reputation systems, activities that both support the community and increase and network outcomes. the reputation of the individual. In open, online Q&A and learning forums, norms, rules and procedures emerge associated with knowledge 2. Research Questions and community practice. Roles include moderators who manage rules, and braiders who weave together threads from others’ answers [28]; recognitions include flairs As the importance of these open, online, knowledge- granted for merit-based contributions (Reddit). Roles exchange initiatives increase, a number of questions and recognitions emerge from practice: e.g., participants arise about how conversational practices sustain who are known for finding previous answers to current participation, valued knowledge exchange, and questions have recently been recognized with a “FAQ community commitment. Here we examine these finder” flair in Reddit AskHistorians [12]. Roles and practices in relation to SO, and specifically regarding reputations are built through contributions, and thus SO comments. they make network connections of different types that Three crucial conversational features define accord cohesiveness and support to the community, like practices in SO: the question around which the flairs in Reddit, and reputation points in SO. Roles, discussion is centered; the answer or answers; and the recognitions, and reputation systems provide structure comments on both questions and answers. Comments in in the network that forms the character and practice of a SO serve as “temporary post-it notes on questions and particular community of practice [16, 34]. answers”. By design, comments can only be posted An important network outcome in learning sites is below questions and answers, and thus, comments are trust in the knowledge gained through the site, and that always associated with the discussion around the in turn can be based on trust in the knowledge exchange question or answer(s) in a post. As noted, posting practices. In SO, as in other such communities, any comments is a privilege, open only to SO users with knowledge hierarchy that exists is created and some reputation gained through SO participation recognized from within, and trust is built through a (https://stackoverflow.com/help/privileges/comment). recognition system. The reputation built through SO Comments clarify and enrich the content conveyed activity leads to privileges in the community. In SO, through questions and answers. Examining comments is reputation is recognized by accumulating points based particularly relevant when considering SO as a learning on others’ acknowledgement of the value of a question site because comments go beyond the question or or answer (points do not accrue for comments). Points answer to show the process of learning and knowledge are awarded according to the number of upvotes on a construction. question (5 points) or answer (10 points; downvotes Prior scholarship on SO has analyzed questions and subtract points), an answer ‘accepted’ as the best answers extensively, and how these enrich discussion solution (15 points), and answering a question with an quality. However, the contribution of comments in SO associated bounty (various amount of points; reputation discussions has not been thoroughly analyzed. This points placed on a question as a way to elicit study provides initial insight into the typology of answers;(https://stackoverflow.com/help/whatsreputa- comments in SO, and the value these brings to the SO tion). community. The overall research question for this study The privileges lead to increased access to the is: workings of SO. This allows participants to strengthen ● How do comments support learning and their commitment to the community through more and community in SO? different kinds of contributions (in social network terms, To evaluate the nature of commenting on SO, a this increases their relational multiplexity, which is an content analysis was carried out to identify the types of indicator of tie strength). The privilege, most relevant to comments in SO, and then applied to a larger dataset of the current study is, being allowed to post comments; a comments to address the questions: privilege provided only to those with 50 reputation ● What are the main categories or types of points, and thus is available only to those demonstrating comments observed in SO threads? some competence and knowledge about
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