Examining online knowledge contribution from the digital identity perspective

Abstract

Virtual Communities (VCs), in recent years, have increasingly become a popular avenue for people to share their interests, build relationships, create fantasies and engage in transactions. Among many factors studied, member's knowledge contribution is less explored despised their importance in the context of VCs. This study, hence, seeks to gain a nuanced understanding of why VC members contribute knowledge online by introducing a new construct, digital identity, which is rarely used in VC research. Through this research, we hope to identify predominant factors influencing VC member's online knowledge contribution behavior.