Social Network Dynamics for Open Source Software Projects

摘要

Drawing on social network theories and previous studies, this research is an initial effort to explore the dynamics of the social network structure in Open Source Software (OSS) teams. Three projects were selected from SourceForge.net in term of their similarities as well as their differences. Monthly data were extracted from the bug tracking system in order to achieve a longitudinal view of the interaction pattern of each project. Social network analysis was used to generate the indices of network structure. The finding suggests that the interaction pattern of OSS projects evolves from a single hub at the beginning to a core/periphery model as the projects move forward.