IT, Social Capital and the Digital Ecosystem: A New Approach to Online Content Co-Creation

In this paper, we explore how the dynamics of knowledge transfer within a community depends on social capital and how the synergies generated by social capital can positively impact the co-ordination between member-nodes. This could lead to the evolution of a more complex and multi functional ICT enabled socio-technical system capable of enhanced co-creation of knowledge. In this context, we present the Digital Ecosystem (DE) concept as a prototype for a sustainable knowledge synthesizing network. A Digital ecosystem describes an ICT enabled network that displays associative and autopieotic properties. In other words, not only is a so defined network capable of self sustenance, but also of expansion through heightened inclusion (i.e., increasing heterogeneity in the network composition) and growth (i.e., increase in the size and scope of the network).

In simple terms, a DE is a web of interconnected and interdependent ICT enabled users who transact in the digital mode resulting in synergistic benefits for all. The strength of this system is that it enables a resilient, multi-user exchange relationship capable of adjusting to change. The sustenance of a DE depends on co-operation between member-nodes of the network. This closely rejects the social capital embedded in community relationships. We then look at the evolution of norms and extended social ties within a DE and the effect on content co-creation. Finally, we outline the case of the DEAL (Digital ecosystem for Agriculture and Livelihood) project as an illustration of the digital ecosystem model outlined in the paper, in terms of its projected content creation, validation and sharing systems.