Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

What Do We Know About Hackathon Outcomes and How to Support Them? – A Systematic Literature Review

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Collaboration Technologies and Social Computing (CollabTech 2020)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNISA,volume 12324))

Abstract

Hackathons are time-bounded events where participants gather in teams to develop projects that interest them. Such events have been adopted in various domains to generate innovative solutions, foster learning, build and expand communities and to tackle civic and ecological issues. While research interest has also grown subsequently, most studies focus on singular events in specific domains. A systematic overview of the current state of the art is currently missing. Such an overview is however crucial to further study the hackathon phenomenon, understand its underlying mechanisms and develop support for hackathon organizers, in particular related to the sustainability of hackathon outcomes. This paper fills that gap by reporting on the results of a systematic literature review thus providing an overview of potential hackathon outcomes, design aspects and connections between them that have been addressed in prior work. Our findings also outline gaps in prior work e.g. related to the lack of work focusing on hackathon outcomes other than hackathon projects.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    https://mlh.io/about.

  2. 2.

    We e.g. used the following String for the ACM digital library: + (hackathon) + (“outcome” “guide” “setup” “aspect” “design” “setting”) + (codefest) + (“outcome” “guide” “setup” “aspect” “design” “setting”) + (“coding competition”) + (“outcome” “guide” “setup” “aspect” “design” “setting”).

  3. 3.

    We limited our search to the first 30 results pages.

  4. 4.

    Due to space constraints we only include the most relevant references here. A full list of all references considered in this literature review is available here: https://bit.ly/2CDIezF.

References

  1. Alba, M., et al.: Synergy between smart cities’ hackathons and living labs as a vehicle for accelerating tangible innovations on cities. In: 2016 IEEE International Smart Cities Conference (ISC2), Trento, pp. 1–6. IEEE (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  2. Amugongo, L.M., et al.: Increasing open data awareness and consumption in Namibia: a hackathon approach. In: Cross Media, Berlin, p. 13 (2015)

    Google Scholar 

  3. Angelidis, P., et al.: The hackathon model to spur innovation around global mHealth. J. Med. Eng. & Technol. 40(7–8), 392–399 (2016)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Aryana, B., et al.: Strategies for empowering collective design. Des. J. 22(Sup1.), 2073–2088 (2019)

    Google Scholar 

  5. Birbeck, N., et al.: Self Harmony: rethinking hackathons to design and critique digital technologies for those affected by self-harm. In: Proceedings of the 2017 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - CHI 2017, Denver, Colorado, USA, pp. 146–157. ACM Press (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Boisen, K., Boisen, A., Thomsen, S., Matthiesen, S., Hjerming, M., Hertz, P.: Hacking the hospital environment: young adults designing youth-friendly hospital rooms together with young people with cancer experiences. Int. J. Adolesc. Med. Health 29(4), 1–6 (2015)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Brereton, P., et al.: Lessons from applying the systematic literature review process within the software engineering domain. J. Syst. Softw. 80(4), 571–583 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Briscoe, G., Mulligan, C.: Digital Innovation: The Hackathon Phenomenon, p. 13. Creativeworks London (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Chandrasekaran, S., et al.: Best practices in running collaborative GPU hackathons: advancing scientific applications with a sustained impact. Comput. Sci. Eng. 20(4), 95–106 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Chandrasekaran, S., et al.: The OLCF GPU hackathon series: the story behind advancing scientific applications with a sustained impact. In: EduHPC-17: Workshop on Education for High-Performance Computing (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  11. Cobham, D., et al.: From appfest to entrepreneurs: using a hackathon event to seed a university student-led enterprise. In: International Technology, Education and Development Conference, Valencia, Spain, March 2017

    Google Scholar 

  12. Cobham, D., et al.: From hackathon to student enterprise: an evaluation of creating successful and sustainable student entrepreneurial activity initiated by a university hackathon. In: International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies, Barcelona, Spain, March 2017

    Google Scholar 

  13. Dainotti, A., et al.: The BGP hackathon 2016 report. SIGCOMM Comput. Commun. Rev. 46(3), 1–6 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Day, K., et al.: How do the design features of health hackathons contribute to participatory medicine? AJIS. 21, 1–14 (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  15. Drouhard, M., et al.: A typology of hackathon events. In: Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Media (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  16. Farhan, E., Kocher, M.: Big Team Game Jams: a framework to emulate big production using game jams with big teams. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Game Jams, Hackathons, and Game Creation Events - GJH&GC 2016, San Francisco, CA, USA, pp. 1–7. ACM Press (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  17. Ferguson, A.L., et al.: Conference report: 2018 materials and data science hackathon (MATDAT18). Mol. Syst. Des. Eng. 4(3), 462–468 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Filippova, A., et al.: From diversity by numbers to diversity as process: supporting inclusiveness in software development teams with brainstorming. In: 2017 IEEE/ACM 39th International Conference on Software Engineering (ICSE), Buenos Aires, pp. 152–163. IEEE (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  19. Flores, M., et al.: How can hackathons accelerate corporate innovation? In: Moon, I., Lee, G.M., Park, J., Kiritsis, D., von Cieminski, G. (eds.) APMS 2018. IAICT, vol. 535, pp. 167–175. Springer, Cham (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99704-9_21

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  20. Frey, F.J., Luks, M.: The innovation-driven hackathon: one means for accelerating innovation. In: Proceedings of the 21st European Conference on Pattern Languages of Programs - EuroPlop 2016, Kaufbeuren, Germany, pp. 1–11. ACM Press (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  21. Gama, K., et al.: Hackathons in the formal learning process. In: Proceedings of the 23rd Annual ACM Conference on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education - ITiCSE 2018, Larnaca, Cyprus, pp. 248–253. ACM Press (2018)

    Google Scholar 

  22. Gama, K., et al.: Mapathons and hackathons to crowdsource the generation and usage of geographic data. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Game Jams, Hackathons and Game Creation Events 2019 - ICGJ 2019, San Francisco, CA, USA, pp. 1–5. ACM Press (2019)

    Google Scholar 

  23. Ghouila, A., et al.: Hackathons as a means of accelerating scientific discoveries and knowledge transfer. Genome Res. 28(5), 759–765 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Horton, P.A., et al.: Project-based learning among engineering students during short-form hackathon events. In: American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition at, Salt Lake City, UT (2018)

    Google Scholar 

  25. Hou, Y., Wang, D.: Hacking with NPOs: collaborative analytics and broker roles in civic data hackathons. Proc. ACM Hum. Comput. Interact. 1(CSCW), 1–16 (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  26. Karlsen, J., Løvlie, A.S.: ‘You can dance your prototype if you like’: independent filmmakers adapting the hackathon. Digit. Creat. 28(3), 224–239 (2017)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Kitchenham, B., et al.: Systematic literature reviews in software engineering – a systematic literature review. Inf. Softw. Technol. 51(1), 7–15 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Lara, M., et al.: Peer-led hackathon: an intense learning experience (2015)

    Google Scholar 

  29. Lara, M., Lockwood, K.: Hackathons as community-based learning: a case study. TechTrends 60(5), 486–495 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-016-0101-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Linnell, N., et al.: Hack for the homeless: a humanitarian technology hackathon. In: IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC 2014), San Jose, CA, pp. 577–584. IEEE (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  31. Mantzavinou, A., Ranger, B.J., Gudapakkam, S., Broach Hutchins, K.G., Bailey, E., Olson, K.R.: Health hackathons drive affordable medical technology innovation through community engagement. In: Hostettler, S., Najih Besson, S., Bolay, J.-C. (eds.) UNESCO 2016, pp. 87–95. Springer, Cham (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-91068-0_8

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  32. Medina Angarita, M.A., Nolte, A.: Does it matter why we hack? – exploring the impact of goal alignment in hackathons, 16 (2019)

    Google Scholar 

  33. Nandi, A., Mandernach, M.: Hackathons as an informal learning platform. In: Proceedings of the 47th ACM Technical Symposium on Computing Science Education - SIGCSE 2016, Memphis, Tennessee, USA, pp. 346–351. ACM Press (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  34. Nolte, A., et al.: You hacked and now what?: - exploring outcomes of a corporate hackathon. Proc. ACM Hum. Comput. Interact. 2(CSCW), 1–23 (2018)

    Google Scholar 

  35. Olson, K.R., et al.: Health hackathons: theatre or substance? A survey assessment of outcomes from healthcare-focused hackathons in three countries. BMJ Innov. 3(1), 37–44 (2017)

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  36. Page, F., et al.: The use of the “hackathon” in design education: an opportunistic exploration. In: Engineering and Product Design Education (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  37. Pe-Than, E.P.P., et al.: Designing corporate hackathons with a purpose: the future of software development. IEEE Softw. 36(1), 15–22 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Pirker, J., et al.: Social aspects of the game development process in the Global Gam Jam. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Game Jams, Hackathons, and Game Creation Events - ICGJ 2018, San Francisco, CA, USA, pp. 9–16. ACM Press (2018)

    Google Scholar 

  39. Porter, E., et al.: Reappropriating hackathons: the production work of the CHI4Good day of service. In: Proceedings of the 2017 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - CHI 2017, Denver, Colorado, USA, pp. 810–814. ACM Press (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  40. Purwanto, A., Zuiderwijk, A., Janssen, M.: Citizens’ motivations for engaging in open data hackathons. In: Panagiotopoulos, P., et al. (eds.) ePart 2019. LNCS, vol. 11686, pp. 130–141. Springer, Cham (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-27397-2_11

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  41. Rosell, B., et al.: Unleashing innovation through internal hackathons. In: 2014 IEEE Innovations in Technology Conference, Warwick, RI, pp. 1–8. IEEE (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  42. Sadovykh, A., et al.: On the use of hackathons to enhance collaboration in large collaborative projects : - a preliminary case study of the MegaM@Rt2 EU project. In: 2019 Design, Automation & Test in Europe Conference & Exhibition (DATE), Florence, Italy, pp. 498–503. IEEE (2019)

    Google Scholar 

  43. Safarova, B., et al.: Learning from collaborative integration. In: 33rd eCAADe Conference (2015)

    Google Scholar 

  44. Soltani, P., et al.: Hackathon – a method for digital innovative success: a comparative descriptive study. In: Proceedings of the 8th European Conference on Information Management and Evaluation, ECIME 2014 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  45. Starov, O., et al.: Hacking the Innovations with University-Industry Hackathons. University-Industry Interaction Conference (2015)

    Google Scholar 

  46. Stoltzfus, A., et al.: Community and code: nine lessons from nine NESCent Hackathons. F1000Res. 6, 786 (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  47. Suominen, A.H., et al.: Educational hackathon: innovation contest for innovation pedagogy. innovation, the name of the game. In: Proceedings of the 2018 ISPIM Innovation Conference (Stockholm), 18 (2018)

    Google Scholar 

  48. Tang, T., Vezzani, V.: Fostering a culture of collaboration through playful Design Jams. In: 9th International Conference, Senses & Sensibility 2017: Design Beyond Borders and Rhizomes (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  49. Trainer, E.H., et al.: How to hackathon: socio-technical tradeoffs in brief, intensive collocation. In: CSCW (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  50. Wilson, J., et al.: Beyond the classroom: the impact of a university-based civic hackathon addressing homelessness. J. Soc. Work. Educ. 55(4), 736–749 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia

    Maria Angelica Medina Angarita & Alexander Nolte

  2. Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Alexander Nolte

Authors
  1. Maria Angelica Medina Angarita
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Alexander Nolte
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Maria Angelica Medina Angarita or Alexander Nolte .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia

    Alexander Nolte

  2. Universidad de Los Andes, Las Condes, Chile

    Claudio Alvarez

  3. Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan

    Reiko Hishiyama

  4. University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia

    Irene-Angelica Chounta

  5. Tallinn University, Tallinn, Estonia

    María Jesús Rodríguez-Triana

  6. University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan

    Tomoo Inoue

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Medina Angarita, M.A., Nolte, A. (2020). What Do We Know About Hackathon Outcomes and How to Support Them? – A Systematic Literature Review. In: Nolte, A., Alvarez, C., Hishiyama, R., Chounta, IA., Rodríguez-Triana, M., Inoue, T. (eds) Collaboration Technologies and Social Computing . CollabTech 2020. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 12324. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58157-2_4

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58157-2_4

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-58156-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-58157-2

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation