Virtual Community of Practice
Encyclopedia
To some a virtual community of practice is a misnomer as the original concept of a community of practice
(CoP) was based around situated learning
in a co-located setting. However, with increasing globalization
and the continued growth of the Internet
many now claim that virtual CoPs do exist (e.g.
Dubé, Bourhis & Jacob, 2005; Murillo, 2006; Zarb, 2006; Hara & Hew, 2007; Murillo, 2008). For example, some claim that a wiki (such as wikipedia.org) is a virtual CoP (Bryant, Forte & Bruckman, 2005), others argue that the essence of a community is that it is place based - a community of place
.
There is also debate on the very term VCoP since the community is real though the form of communication is mostly, if not entirely, computer-mediated
. Few believe that a community of practice may be formed without any face to face meetings whatsoever. In fact many leading CoP thinkers stress the importance of such meetings. However some researchers argue that a VCoP's high use of ICT, changes some of its characteristics and introduces new complexities and ambiguities, thus justifying the creation of the term and area of study (Kim, 2004; Zarb, 2006).
Some of the other terms used have been (in chronological order) on-line , computer-mediated (Etzioni & Etzioni, 1999), electronic (Wasko & Faraj, 2000) and distributed (Hildreth, Kimble & Wright, 1998). Wenger et al., 2002; Kimble & Hildreth, 2005. As the mode of communication can involve face-to-face, telephone and letter, and the defining feature is its distributed nature. For a comparison between Virtual Learning Communities (VLCs) with Distributed Communities of Practice (DCoP), see Couros & Kesten (2003).
Recent research has produced evidence that increases in the sharing of tacit knowledge
, which is very much inherent within CoP theory, may take place, albeit to a lesser degree, in a VCoP scenario even though such systems make use of written word (Zarb, 2006). This is spurring interest in what is sometimes referred to as community-driven knowledge management or Community Based Knowledge Management, where CoP and VCoP theory is harnessed, nourished and supported within the broader organisational setting.
They address the needs that people have which can not easily be satisfied with traditional resources such as broadcast media, formal publications, academia, and ad-hoc associations or relationships. Online communities of practice run the gamut from forums, faqs, to email list serves. Offline communities of practice include user groups such as ASUG and eBay’s annual “Live” event.
Communities of practice provide a critical resource to professionals who want and need recommendations, pointers, tips and tricks, best practices, insights and innovations. Part of what makes a community practice strong is the aggregation of relevance; that is, people and information related to a coherent set of topics which certain people will find interesting, useful, and potentially profitable. Communities of practice lift us up to support us, to help us achieve our aspirations, reach our goals, and to be of service.
argue that virtual communities change the way we think of community and that technology stewardship is a key element of virtual communities of practice by making virtual communities independent of any one technology.
Community of practice
A community of practice is, according to cognitive anthropologists Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger, a group of people who share an interest, a craft, and/or a profession. The group can evolve naturally because of the members' common interest in a particular domain or area, or it can be created...
(CoP) was based around situated learning
Situated learning
Situated learning was first proposed by Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger as a model of learning in a Community of practice. At its simplest, situated learning is learning that takes place in the same context in which it is applied...
in a co-located setting. However, with increasing globalization
Globalization
Globalization refers to the increasingly global relationships of culture, people and economic activity. Most often, it refers to economics: the global distribution of the production of goods and services, through reduction of barriers to international trade such as tariffs, export fees, and import...
and the continued growth of the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
many now claim that virtual CoPs do exist (e.g.
Dubé, Bourhis & Jacob, 2005; Murillo, 2006; Zarb, 2006; Hara & Hew, 2007; Murillo, 2008). For example, some claim that a wiki (such as wikipedia.org) is a virtual CoP (Bryant, Forte & Bruckman, 2005), others argue that the essence of a community is that it is place based - a community of place
Community of place
A community of place or place-based community is a community of people who are bound together because of where they reside, work, visit or otherwise spend a continuous portion of their time...
.
There is also debate on the very term VCoP since the community is real though the form of communication is mostly, if not entirely, computer-mediated
Computer-mediated communication
Computer-mediated communication is defined as any communicative transaction that occurs through the use of two or more networked computers...
. Few believe that a community of practice may be formed without any face to face meetings whatsoever. In fact many leading CoP thinkers stress the importance of such meetings. However some researchers argue that a VCoP's high use of ICT, changes some of its characteristics and introduces new complexities and ambiguities, thus justifying the creation of the term and area of study (Kim, 2004; Zarb, 2006).
Some of the other terms used have been (in chronological order) on-line , computer-mediated (Etzioni & Etzioni, 1999), electronic (Wasko & Faraj, 2000) and distributed (Hildreth, Kimble & Wright, 1998). Wenger et al., 2002; Kimble & Hildreth, 2005. As the mode of communication can involve face-to-face, telephone and letter, and the defining feature is its distributed nature. For a comparison between Virtual Learning Communities (VLCs) with Distributed Communities of Practice (DCoP), see Couros & Kesten (2003).
Recent research has produced evidence that increases in the sharing of tacit knowledge
Tacit knowledge
Tacit knowledge is knowledge that is difficult to transfer to another person by means of writing it down or verbalising it. For example, stating to someone that London is in the United Kingdom is a piece of explicit knowledge that can be written down, transmitted, and understood by a recipient...
, which is very much inherent within CoP theory, may take place, albeit to a lesser degree, in a VCoP scenario even though such systems make use of written word (Zarb, 2006). This is spurring interest in what is sometimes referred to as community-driven knowledge management or Community Based Knowledge Management, where CoP and VCoP theory is harnessed, nourished and supported within the broader organisational setting.
On-Line Communities of Practice
Communities of Practice like Sap’s SDN developer network, Adobe’s XMP forum, Sermo for physicians, or domain-specific corporate-internal communities such as those found at HP, revolve around people's professional or vocational needs for connections, information, identity, and sense of belonging. Communities of practice are about what people do for a living.They address the needs that people have which can not easily be satisfied with traditional resources such as broadcast media, formal publications, academia, and ad-hoc associations or relationships. Online communities of practice run the gamut from forums, faqs, to email list serves. Offline communities of practice include user groups such as ASUG and eBay’s annual “Live” event.
Communities of practice provide a critical resource to professionals who want and need recommendations, pointers, tips and tricks, best practices, insights and innovations. Part of what makes a community practice strong is the aggregation of relevance; that is, people and information related to a coherent set of topics which certain people will find interesting, useful, and potentially profitable. Communities of practice lift us up to support us, to help us achieve our aspirations, reach our goals, and to be of service.
argue that virtual communities change the way we think of community and that technology stewardship is a key element of virtual communities of practice by making virtual communities independent of any one technology.
See also
- Network of practiceNetwork of practiceNetwork of Practice is a concept originated by John Seely Brown and Paul Duguid . This concept, related to the work on communities of practice by Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger, refers to the overall set of various types of informal, emergent social networks that facilitate information exchange...
- Online community of practiceOnline community of practiceAn Online Community of Practice , also known as a Virtual Community of Practice, is a Community of Practice that is developed on, and is maintained using the Internet. To qualify as an OCoP, the characteristics of a Community in Practice as described by Lave and Wenger must be met...
- Online participationOnline participationSeveral motivations lead people to contribute to virtual communities. Various online media , are becoming ever greater knowledge-sharing resources. Many of these communities are highly cooperative and establish their own unique culture...
- Virtual communityVirtual communityA virtual community is a social network of individuals who interact through specific media, potentially crossing geographical and political boundaries in order to pursue mutual interests or goals...
- Virtual EthnographyVirtual ethnographyOnline ethnography refers to a number of related online research methods that adapt ethnographic methods to the study of the communities and cultures created through computer-mediated social interaction...
- Virtual teamVirtual teamA virtual team is a group of individuals who work across time, space and organizational boundaries with links strengthened by webs of communication technology...
External links
( A critical review of virtual CoPs )- Where is the Action in Virtual Communities of Practice? Another critical review of virtual CoPs
- Communities of Practice: Going Virtual
- Distributed Design Teams as Communities of Practice
- Virtual Communities of Practice: Differentiated Consequences for Individuals in Two Organisational Contexts
- Knowledge Networking: Structure and Performance in Networks of Practice
- Zarb, M.P (2006). Modelling Participation in Virtual Communities-of-Practice
- DARnet wiki - Action Research with Distributed Communities of Practice