Towards an understanding of uncertainty on Wikipedia during crises: a mixed methods approach

Abstract

This thesis proposes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the Wikipedia editors' response to new disease outbreak crises. A mixed methods triangulation-based approach is used to examine the change in the editing patterns and the response to the uncertainty during new disease outbreak crises on Wikipedia. Quantitative data sources have been utilised to reveal the patterns of editing activities during new disease outbreak crises and to establish the reasons behind this change. Qualitative data sources have been used to distinguish between the forms and the strategies used to manage the uncertainty during new disease outbreak crises. The triangulation and the integration of results revealed Wikipedia as a social machine. This is further discussed while highlighting the importance of 'co-creation' on Wikipedia during new disease outbreak crises. This thesis presents a thematic framework that depicts various forms of uncertainty and the strategies used to manage this uncertainty on Wikipedia during crises. Therefore, this thesis provides a conceptual and methodological contribution to the field of Web Science and has important implications for future research.

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ORCID for Wendy Hall: orcid.org/0000-0003-4327-7811

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