Drawing the Big Picture: Analyzing FLOSS Collaboration with Temporal Social Network Analysis

Amir Azarbakht

How can we understand FOSS collaboration better? Can social issues that emerge be identified and addressed before it is too late? Can the community heal itself, become more transparent and inclusive, and promote diversity? We propose a technique to address these issues by quantitative analysis of social dynamics in FOSS communities. We propose using social network analysis metrics to identify growth patterns and unhealthy dynamics; giving the community a heads-up when they can still take action to ensure the sustainability of the project.

A PDF file will be made available on August 5, 2013, through the WikiSym + OpenSym 2013 conference proceedings.