Pelacho Maite, Orejudo Santos, Clemente-Gallardo Jesús
Ibercivis Foundation, Zaragoza, Spain.
Department of Philosophy, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
PLoS One. 2025 Jun 25;20(6):e0325593. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0325593. eCollection 2025.
The study of the commons is a growing field of research that is highly relevant to fostering the sustainability of shared resources, including knowledge resources. Citizen science has great potential to constitute science as a knowledge commons, in which continued participation is essential for the long-term viability of inherently collaborative projects and the strengthening of communities. However, different motivations for participation can significantly influence continued engagement, and, consequently, the sustainability of these projects. This research explores, first, participants' motivations for joining and continuing projects, as well as the reasons for abandoning them. Secondly, we analyse the influence of various motivations on continuity, with a particular focus on highly committed participants-an aspect hitherto scarcely investigated. Specifically, we examine whether these participants' motivations are primarily associated with general interests (e.g., resource sustainability) alongside personal interests (e.g., capability building). This approach aligns with the key finding of commons theory, which challenges the idea that rational behaviour implies only self-interest. The analyses of 478 responses to the survey designed for this study reveal that participants who sustain CS projects through continued participation are driven by a combination of personal and general interests. These findings reflect cooperative behaviours characteristic of individuals who create or maintain commons. Therefore, we propose that science can be understood as a commons that can be collaboratively and sustainably managed by multiple, decentralized communities. Consequently, fostering cooperation is essential for the effective management of shared resources, particularly in citizen science projects. Enhancing our understanding of cooperation enables the better and more effective implementation of specific recommendations, such as optimizing communication among all those involved in citizen science projects and fostering awareness of common goals and collective achievements. In turn, this reinforces personal benefits, creating a virtuous circle that further strengthens cooperation and its benefits.
对公地的研究是一个不断发展的研究领域，与促进包括知识资源在内的共享资源的可持续性高度相关。公民科学有很大潜力将科学构建为一种知识公地，在这种公地中，持续参与对于本质上具有协作性的项目的长期可行性以及社区的强化至关重要。然而，不同的参与动机可能会显著影响持续参与度，进而影响这些项目的可持续性。本研究首先探讨参与者参与和持续参与项目的动机，以及放弃项目的原因。其次，我们分析各种动机对持续性的影响，特别关注高度投入的参与者——这是一个迄今为止几乎未被研究的方面。具体而言，我们研究这些参与者的动机是否主要与一般利益（如资源可持续性）以及个人利益（如能力建设）相关。这种方法与公地理论的关键发现一致，该发现挑战了理性行为仅意味着自身利益的观点。对为本研究设计的调查的478份回复的分析表明，通过持续参与维持公民科学项目的参与者是由个人利益和一般利益的结合所驱动的。这些发现反映了创建或维护公地的个人的合作行为特征。因此，我们建议科学可以被理解为一种公地，它可以由多个分散的社区进行协作和可持续管理。因此，促进合作对于共享资源的有效管理至关重要，特别是在公民科学项目中。增强我们对合作的理解有助于更好、更有效地实施具体建议，例如优化公民科学项目所有参与者之间的沟通，以及培养对共同目标和集体成就的认识。反过来，这强化了个人利益，创造了一个良性循环，进一步加强了合作及其益处。
