Author ORCID Identifier:
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1062-5317
Date of Graduation
8-2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration (PhD)
Degree Level
Graduate
Department
Information Systems
Advisor/Mentor
Sabherwal, Rajiv
Committee Member
Mullins, Jeff
Second Committee Member
Johnson, Jon
Third Committee Member
Lacity, Mary
Keywords
Information Flow; Institutional Constraints; Online Communities
Abstract
Online knowledge communities have become critical arenas for information exchange, collaborative problem-solving, and the co-construction of expertise in the digital age. As these platforms expand and mature, they increasingly face design tensions that challenge their ability to remain inclusive, participatory, and high in quality. Institutional rules aimed at fostering content standards may reduce engagement, while features intended to promote openness can unintentionally reinforce ideological conformity. This dissertation adopts a two-essay structure to examine the paradoxical dynamics that emerge in the design and functioning of online communities. Each essay investigates a distinct but interconnected aspect of how institutional structures and communicative patterns shape participation, discourse, and broader community outcomes. Together, they offer complementary perspectives on the structural tensions that often undermine the participatory ideals of digital platforms. The first essay explores how institutional constraints, particularly rules that govern user behavior and content, influence participation and community sustainability. It uses agent-based modeling to simulate how different configurations of rules interact with user preferences to produce patterns of engagement, contribution, and withdrawal. The findings show that content- focused rules tend to improve discourse quality and responsiveness. In contrast, behavior- focused constraints often suppress participation and accelerate user turnover, especially when community engagement is already low. These results highlight the importance of adaptive and context-sensitive governance that aligns rule design with community conditions. The second essay turns to the communicative layer of community dynamics. It examines how emotional and rational discourse styles contribute to the emergence of ideological alignment and discursive closure over time. Drawing on a large dataset of user interactions, the study uses natural language processing techniques, including sentiment and argumentation analysis, alongside panel data regression, to analyze how discourse patterns evolve. The results indicate that emotional expression is linked to greater ideological homogeneity, particularly in fast- growing communities with high interaction volume. Rational discourse, by contrast, is associated with increased openness and cognitive diversity. The effects of responsiveness depend on its distribution. When broadly shared, responsiveness can mitigate emotional polarization. When concentrated among a small number of active participants, it amplifies the impact of rational dialogue. Together, these essays demonstrate that the paradoxes observed in online community design are not incidental but reflect structural tensions embedded within platforms. Rules created to improve quality can discourage contribution. Features that promote openness may lead to ideological silos. Discourse patterns that boost engagement may weaken deliberative depth. This dissertation contributes to institutional and communication theory by uncovering non- linear and context-dependent relationships between platform design and user behavior. It also offers practical guidance for developers, moderators, and policymakers seeking to design online environments that are more inclusive, sustainable, and ideologically diverse.
Citation
Kuai, L. (2025). Understanding Paradoxical Dynamics in Online Communities: The Role of Governance and Community Characteristics. Graduate Theses and Dissertations Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/5955
