Abstract
This paper discusses about contemporary literature on computer-mediated metacommunication and observes the phenomenon in two online communities. The results contribute by identifying six general-level patterns of how metacommunication refers to primary communication in online communities. A task-oriented, user-administrated, community (Wikipedia in Finnish) involved a remarkable number of specialized metacommunication genres. In a centrally moderated discussion-oriented community (Patientslikeme), metacommunication was intertwined more with primary ad hoc communication. We suggest that a focus on specialized metacommunication genres may appear useful in online communities. However, room for ad hoc (meta)communication is needed as well, as it provides a basis for user-initiated community development.
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Lanamäki, A., Päivärinta, T. (2009). Metacommunication Patterns in Online Communities. In: Ozok, A.A., Zaphiris, P. (eds) Online Communities and Social Computing. OCSC 2009. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 5621. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-02774-1_26
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-02774-1_26
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