Human Resource Management-relevant Virtual Community Re- search: Review and Outlook Anke Diederichsen, Saarland University, Germany a.diederichsen@mis.uni-saarland.de Abstract. Virtual Community (VC) is a comprehensive phenomenon with relevance to social as well as economic transactions. Also Human Resource Management (HRM) includes both relationship- and value added-oriented processes. HRM-actors, in particular HR-managers and employees, increasingly try to balance their personal and job-related needs. Thus, given increasingly spatially dispersed workplaces, the usage of VC may generate benefits or risks for HRM-relevant processes. Further, applicants utilize VC to enhance their chances in the recruitment process. Yet, although there is practical evidence of HRM-relevant VC (VCHR), respective research literature seems to be scarce. To explore this, the paper aims at assembling and evaluating relevant academic literature to give an impulse for systematic VCHR-research which might abet to the development of a respective research area in the context of e-HRM. Keywords: virtual applicant community, virtual employee community, virtual HR-community, rigor vs. relevance, e-HRM. 1 Introduction Virtual Communities (VC) are defined as community-oriented, web-based discussions of groups of people with a certain kind of common interest and a certain degree of social belonging [53, 105]. The context in which VC are set is rather broad. Given comprehensive accessibility and habitual usage of information and communication technologies (ICT), VC represent a common and widespread phenomenon and are used in personal as well as organizational scenarios. Virtual discussions develop in regard to gaming (e.g. fun and fantasy), personal interests (e.g. demographic groups, health, hobbies), and economic transactions (e.g. discussions on brands, products, purchases) [for a common categorization see e.g. 6]. Social aspects, which go along with the idea of community, are to be considered in business communication because employees and managers though they act within business scenarios cannot fully prescind from their personal needs. Also, increasing network-oriented organizational forms and virtual workplaces demand to reflect social aspects of the work relationships denominated as ´communities of work´ [109]. Due to their potential socio-economic value VC enhance formal as well as informal communication and thus are able to meet personal and organizational requirements simultaneously. Thus, multifarious motives and benefits are to consider in regard to participation as well as usage and management of VC. Strohmeier, S.; Diederichsen, A. (Eds.), Evidence-Based e-HRM? On the way to rigorous and relevant research, Proceedings of the Third European Academic Workshop on electronic Human Resource Management, Bamberg, Germany, May 20-21, 2010, CEUR-WS.org, ISSN 1613-0073, Vol. 570, online: CEUR-WS.org/Vol-570/ , pp. 207-228. © 2010 for the individual papers by the papers´ authors. Copying permitted only for private and academic purposes. This volume is published and copyrighted by its editors. VC exist in the scope of extra-organizational communication enabling communication with customers, administration/government, businesses, or applicants (B2C, B2G, B2B, B2A), and also in intra-organizational communication enabling communication between internal actors on hierarchical- or peer-levels (B2E, E2E). As already studied in other business scenarios (e-commerce), VC may also affect external and internal HRM- relevant relationships in regard to personnel marketing, training and development, and leadership [35], and are means to foster virtual information exchange and social support in the increasingly dispersed and thus also virtual workplace [128]. Formal, usually task-oriented virtual communication yields the potential to enhance HRM-processes whereas informal, socially-oriented virtual communication (virtual water cooler talk) impact motivation and commitment. Also negative implications need to be considered as personal networks and information exchange increase beyond the sphere of influence of HR-executives. HRM-relevant VC-research should be a subset within the research on e-HRM research [85, 114], which is defined as “[...] the (planning, implementation and) application of information technology for both networking and supporting at least two individual or collective actors in their shared performing of HR activities.” [114: 20]. With reference to this concept, the web-based nature is obvious and actors are easily identified. Yet, although a basic HRM-relevance is assumed further exploration of application and effects is necessary. The aim of this paper is then to enhance research in this area. First, an initial literature review is presented and discussed. Subsequently, an outlook is given to propose relevant research perspectives, a definition to delineate the term VCHR, a typology, as well as theories and methods for further exploration of the VCHR- phenomenon. The paper concludes with a call for future research. 2 Literature Review VC contributions are extensively heterogeneous. To review the amplitude of contributions which strongly differ in quality, perspective, and context is an unfeasible undertaking. Only few papers give rough sketches [53, 83]. VC-research dates back to 1968 when Licklider & Taylor [84] expressed their vision of ´on-line interactive communities´. Following the initiation of a computer network basically for research purposes, further options for virtual (later also web-based) social communications [e.g. 105], conceptual and technological design [e.g. 76, 101], and new business models [e.g. 55] are opened up. The aim of the literature review is to provide an overview of VC-contribution with relevance to (e-)HRM. Due to the chosen review method which has a narrow VC-focus based on the assumed importance of reciprocal communication applications and looking for HRM-relevance in VC-literature rather than on evaluating topical web-based HRM- concepts, the results cannot be exhaustive; yet should definitely lead to confirm and explore or challenge the VC-relevance for HRM. 2.1 Method An iterative research approach is chosen which comprises a period of fifteen years (1995-2010) since the mid 1990s mark essential developments with respect to technology and VC, i.e. the facilitation of the World Wide Web (WWW) and the design of VC for economic purposes. Step 1: A primary review is based on an EBSCOhost Business Source Premier (BSP) database search. A combination of the general search terms ´virtual community´ + 208 ´human resource´ (boolean research mode) applied on titles or abstracts of peer- reviewed academic journals found only one article [37]. As a crosscheck, the screening of A-ranked journals (Human Resource Management/HRM, Human Resource Management Journal/HRMJ, International Journal of Human Resource Management/IJHRM, Journal of Human Resources/JHR according to WU-Journal Rating 2009) only revealed a second contribution [118]. Step 2: Hence, the BSP database review must lean on an extended sample. Keyword combinations (boolean research mode) applied on title or abstract of peer-reviewed academic journals now include specified communication applications (forum/discussion board, weblog, chat/instant messaging/virtual world) instead of the general VC-term, HR-actors (employee, HR-executive, applicant), as well as functional areas (recruitment, development+HR, leadership+HR) and other keywords which imply HR- relevance (knowledge+HR, collaboration+HR, leadership+HR, participation+HR, trust+HR, career). Additionally, the term Virtual Workplace is searched due to the impact of changes in work organization on communication structures. Still, a selection is difficult because a) systematic research in the research field of each HRM-function is beyond the scope of an initial review, b) found HRM key terms (e.g. development) often refer to VC-design instead of HR processes, and c) a selection from other VC- research areas also would reveal differentiation problems due to the large number of contributions. Although this research step could generate ninetynine hits, only seven thereof are considered to be relevant [1, 3, 25, 37, 42, 110, 121]. Step 3: Step 2 shows that either the amount of academic literature on the topic is inherently rather small or the chosen approach significantly constricts the results. Thus, the preceding approach is complemented by free Internet research (Google Scholar, snowball technique), including academic journals and conference proceedings and with reference to the above mentioned keywords. While hereby further thirteen articles are revealed [5, 15, 19, 23, 40, 74, 80, 95, 98, 102, 113, 115, 124] it is detrimental that the results are not reproducible. Step 4: In order to better understand the identified contributions, they should be contextually discussed. For that, the fourth step includes free research on contextual contributions. 2.2 General Results In contrary to the amplitude of general VC literature, literature on HR-specific VC is scarce and no discrete e-HRM sub-discipline can be stated. The selection of twentyone articles listed in figure 1 comprises a basis for future research, yet is subject to discussion in regard to the degree of differentiation from related areas (e.g. work organizational, knowledge management (KM)) as well as it cannot be exhaustive in regard to applied research method and an unidentified number of practical or semi- academic contributions. Within the proposed selection eighteen contributions are published in academic journals [1, 3, 5, 15, 19, 23, 25, 37, 42, 74, 95, 98, 102, 110, 115, 118, 121, 124] and three stem from conference proceedings [40, 80, 113]. The inclusion of proceedings should have increased the results as meanwhile large international conferences (e.g. International Conference on Communities and Technologies/C&T, Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences/HICSS, Americas Conference on Information Systems/AMCIS) offer particular (mini-)tracks on VC. The comparably small number however is explicable as those tracks mostly focus on social aspects, marketing/e-commerce 209 perspective, success, and design. Explicit HRM-relevant aspects however are neglected. The regional dispersion based on authors´ affiliations shows a majority of articles with American origin (N=12), followed by Europe (N=7) and Asia-Pacific (N=3)10. In regard to chronology, the number of contributions increased over time. Fifty percent are found in the most current period (2007-2010). Author Explanation aim Theory Method Implications Akkirman/ Employee N/A Case study P: satisfaction and success Harris 2004 satisfaction in the (N=86) of Virtual Workplace (j) Virtual Workplace Correlation and depend on strategies and USA variance activities analysis R: cultural aspects, effects (ANOVA) of implementation, development of company´s performance Anderson Model of HRD- N/A Conceptual P: improvement of HRD 1999 (j) relevant Internet by learnercentric and USA applications interactive Internet-based activities R: learner and instructor types, effects on HRD organization Ardichvili Success factors of N/A Conceptual P: consider framework to 2008 (j) vCoPs as collective encourage participation USA learning measures in and remove barriers the workplace R: explore vCoP in context of activitiy theory and situated cognition theory Birchall/ Company-external N/A Conceptual P: VC are a feasible Giambona Virtual Learning learning tool in regard to 2007 (j) Communities for temporal, financial, and UK SME managers spatial restrictions R: trust level and development Bock et al. Impact of VC OSU Study (N=92) P: VC management 2008 (j) leadership on leadership PLS should consider Singapore motivation and theory leadership styles organizational R: explore leadership in commitment blended communities, other influencing factors, and outcomes Cho et al. Impact of IM on N/A Study (N=137) P: general usefullness of 2005 (j) occupational Interviews IM to support Korea relationships (N=13) occupational relationships Social network R: explore hierarchical analysis and cultural aspects Cortini 2009 Challenges, options related to Conceptual P: reflection of blogging (j) and risks of weblogs CSP- policies Italy in the context of Framework R: perception of blogging 10 Note: Parker et al (2004) is counted twice as it is of American and Asia-Pacific origin. 210 Corporate Social policies and company´s Performance (CSP) attitudes towards blogging by employees, impact on commitment Ebner et al. VC-concept of N/A Case study P: relevance for R&D and 2009 (j) company-external Action HR-processes, incentives Germany suggestion Research for participation and management system stakeholder´s participation in development R: conditions, structures, consequences, further application scenarios Ettinger et al. Participation factors N/A Case study P: relationship-oriented 2008 (p) in career (N=1) design suggestions for Netherlands/ communities Interviews recruitment platforms Germany/ (N=6) R: N/A Austria Ethnography Fairbank et Interactive forum as expectancy Conceptual P: replacement of al. 2003 (j) part of Employee theory traditional suggestion USA Suggestion managemgement systems Management R: pilot implementation Systems (ESMS) and evaluation Kahai et al. Team Collaboration N/A Conceptual P: impetus for design 2007 (j) in VW suggestions USA R: impetus for research Laumer et al. Recruiting in VW N/A Study P: recommendation to 2008 (p) (N=9.679) consider VC/VW in Germany Descriptive recruiting strategies statistics R: explore country- Case study specific VW-usage (N=1) patterns Parker et al. Concept of career N/A Case study P: N/A 2004 (j) communities (N=3) R: explore further aspects New Zealand/ Q-methodology (identity, career success, USA (ICCS) career support) and concepts (extra- organizational relationships) Pliskin/ VC evolution during N/A Case study P: N/A Romm 1997 a strike (N=1) R: explore intra- (j) Content /interorganizational ICT Israel analysis usage, cultural factors, ethical dilemmas Quan-Haase IM for Collaboration N/A Study (N=27) P: consider visibility tools et al. 2005 (j) Interviews in VC design Canada (N=10) R: extend social Text analysis translucence of (Nvivo) technology (STT) framework Shaw et al. Impact of IM on N/A Explorative P: additional to traditional 2007 (j) organizational study (N=78) communication channels, USA communication Logfile increased presence 211 analysis, awareness, thus more Deskriptive effective communication statistics and increased productivity R: restraints on productivity by IM usage Stocker/ Weblog usage in N/A Case study P: promotion and content Tochtermann SMEs (N=1) are key factors for weblog 2008 (p) Descriptive success Austria statistics R: impetus for research Experiment Study (N=40) Taras/ Gesser ”Greedy Associates“ N/A Conceptual P: VC are worth watching 2003 (j) (GA) phenomenon R: N/A Canada/ USA Valentine et Ethical aspects of Related to Explorative P: definition of fair al. 2010 (j) firing employees due Integrative study (N=401), blogging policies USA to their blogging Social Regressions R: ethical aspects in activites Contract and variance further blogging scenarios Theory analysis (ANOVA) Warisse Relation between Related to Study and P: careful definition of Turner et al. media usage (virtual social interview media-usage policies 2006 (j) presence) and influence (N=88), F: further organizational, USA performance theory and Hierarchical media-related, and appraisal media regession appraisal-related aspects richness Wiesenfeld et Social aspects in the N/A Study (N=250) P: social support al. 2001 (j) virtual workplace Regression strengthens organizational USA analysis identification, investment in sophisticated ICT R: explore organizational identification in context of virtual workplaces Figure 1: Overview of VCHR-research. (j) = published in journal, (p) = published in conference proceedings, P = implications for practice, R = implications for research. 2.3 Content Analysis In this subchapter, a short overview of the content along the criteria explanation aim, theory, method, and implication is presented. The explanation aims are heterogeneous and thus can confirm the VC-relevance in the assumed and further HRM areas: recruitment [37, 40, 80], development [3, 5, 15, 42, 95], leadership [1, 19, 25, 118, 121, 124], work organization and organizational communication [23, 74, 102, 110, 113], and industrial relations [98, 115]. Further, the contributions show deficiencies in their theoretical foundation. Only two contributions [19, 42] apply an explicit theory while other three [25, 118, 121] relate to selected models and frameworks. Yet, all contributions base upon a thorough literature review and discussion of previous concepts to formulate research questions and hypotheses. Also in regard to the applied method, quite explorative research character becomes obvious. Two third of the contributions apply a qualitative or quantitative study. Hereof, three contributions [37, 110, 118] explicitly declare themselves as explorative or action research while the 212 remaining on third of the whole selection is conceptual and likewise gives reason for future research. Finally, the majority of contributions derive implications for practice and research in order to benefit from the results. 2.4 Contextual Discussion The identified VCHR-research contributions are discussed below in the context of HRM considering further literature to strengthen the evidence of the selected contributions. Basically, the review selection concerns recruitment, career support, leadership, organizational communication, and KM, as well as aspects of industrial relations. This rather broad set of HR-relevant areas is definitely not arbitrary but rather reflects a comprehensive initial review of the area. VC offer potential in recruitment. Benefits may be realized by applicants which attend applicant communities for information exchange and support, or by organizations which gather information from applicant communities or initiate or take part in applicant-HR communities for recruiting purposes. Laumer et al. 2008 [80] explored on the one hand the (frequent) usage of virtual worlds, a special kind of VC, by job seekers and on the other hand the (positive) experience of a popular company from the IT-sector which established a recruiting center in Second Life (SL). Ebner et al. 2009 [37] suggest to exploit company-initiated external R&D communities also for recruitment purposes as those communities make significant applicant information available. VC can also support career investments. This may be in form of intra- or extra- organizational career communities [40, 95] or as special forms of general e-mentoring [38]. Ettinger et al. 2008 [40] focus on aspects of participating in recruitment platforms and conclude that job seekers are inclined to use this recruitment and career support if community- and network-supporting applications are offered. Parker et al. 2004 [95] explore the concept of career communities in order to identify possible characteristics and typology. They find that practical career communities comprehend a set of ideal types and serve different functions such as career support, sense-making, and learning. They emphasize that future career support requirements probably cannot be met only by company-internal concepts so that extra-organizational relationships gain in importance. Further, the concept of e-mentoring as presented by Ensher et al. 2003 [38] should be considered in this context, as recent mentoring definitions go beyond dyadic relationships and mentoring roles also include personal relationships which enhance social, affective support. E-mentoring can be attached either to informal networks to support personal career endeavours or to formal organizational development and leadership strategies. VC offer options for e-leadership. E-leadership, defined as execution of measures (power, rewards, expertise, role-modeling) to motivate individuals or groups to fulfil certain task in a virtual environment [e.g. 7, 104], can be perceived as a subset of e- HRM and becomes increasingly important in the virtual workplace. Bock et al. 2008 [19] explore the impact of leadership characteristics perceptions on motivation and organizational commitment. Being focused on non-work related communities (within the organizational setting), they affirm the supposition that the existence of virtual relationship-oriented communities (in contrary to task-oriented virtual teams) positively influence employees´ work habits. Awareness on adequate leadership styles even increases the probability of a positive outcome. Respective measures to create a sense of belonging and trust which can be enhanced by colleague- or leadership have impacts on employee satisfaction and commitment [1, 124]. Executives also need to carefully consider (media usage) policies in order to prevent discrimination as well as ethical and 213 legal issues which might influence commitment and performance negatively [25, 118, 121]. VC influence organizational communication and KM. In general, HR-relevant issues are associated with organizational issues such as organizational structures (positions and hierarchies) and communication structure (ICT usage). It is the function of HRM to recruit, develop, and compensate employees and, therewith, motivate them to fulfill their task-specific roles. Then it is to examine which impact modified organizational and communication structures might have on motivational measures and strategies and if social, relationship-oriented aspects need to be particularly considered in regard to network-oriented organizational forms and ICT-usage [109, 124]. The assumption is that VC usage facilitates knowledge acquisition and exchange. In more detail, diverse reciprocal ICT applications (discussion boards, weblogs, chat) serve as a technological prerequisite for VC. Thus, to explore the impact of such tools for organizational and occupational relationship building is worthwhile. While Cho et al. 2005 and Quan-Haase et al. 2005 [23,102] surveyed the potential impact of IM, which offer benefits for effective communication in form of their presence awareness functions [110], Stocker & Tochtermann 2008 [113] surveyed weblogs, whose value stems from the interlinked conversationality in the blogosphere [e.g. 56]. Also virtual worlds, defined as visually supported webchats, offer a trend for relationship-oriented organizational communication and e-leadership [74]. Then, VC can serve as a measure for organizational KM. While KM is a part of product development to spur innovations [e.g. 37], knowledge communities can also be relevant in HRM as they can be a measure for training and development and support deployment planning and promotion on career paths [5, 113, 119]. KM is increasingly important in knowledge intensive organizations and modified organizational forms such as dispersed and less hierarchical workplaces. The concept of virtual communities of practice (vCoP) also delineates virtual communities in this context [e.g. 5, 29, 36]. Finally, and in addition to HRM-functions and work organization, VC trends in industrial relations should be considered. Due to their networking and information exchange possibilities, VC offer opportunities for job seekers and employees to exert power in regard to the negotiation of compensation and other working conditions [98, 115]. Although such forms of employee communities do not substitute formal unions and their impact is dependent on the design (e.g. traffic, individuality, trustworthiness, topicality) as well as the economic cycle, its existence is ´worth watching carefully´ [115]. Further, there is a general discussion on the impact of ICT on unions to offer new option for information and services, recruitment, networking, and campaigning [e.g. 47, 96]. Thus, terms such as e-voice and e-unions indicate two trends: a) the existence of informal virtual employee communities which render beneficial (individual) negotiation positions in regard to employers, b) formal virtual employee communities (interactive communication of union members) which enhance attractiveness and efficiency of unions. 3 Research Outlook With reference to the rigor vs. relevance debate one could argue, that in regard to the scarcity and scattered kind of contributions, VCHR-research is neither relevant nor rigorous because it is almost not existent. In this regard, the rigor vs. relevance debate is groundless. But, practice shows a great variety of HR-relevant arenas, e.g. company external job boards and employee-oriented industry specific web-based platforms as 214 well as company-internal ICT (e.g. intranets) which nowadays offer a variety of interactive applications for discussion and thus also for VC. Based on this practical evidence, the suspected conclusion that the scarcity of VCHR-research contributions goes along with its irrelevance might be premature and the proposed initial selection might be rather seen as the potential advent of an emerging research area, potentially set in the larger context of e-HRM. This assumption is supported by the fact that analogies from existing VC-research areas are to question, e.g.:  How are VCHR characterized?  Subsequently, must the design of VCHR differ from the design of VC in other areas (e.g. commerce and marketing, relationship and leisure)?  Do organizational settings provoke different considerations of social cues? E.g. does trust have a different impact in the costumer-vendor and the employee- employer relationship?  Does HRM need strategies to cope with a potential loss in their governance potential (hierarchy and information) due to the potential of company-external peer-to-peer information exchange and support?  Do VCHR generate positive/negative economic consequences for HRM? Because of the gap between research and practice is (intended to be) bridgeable [45], VCHR-research is of relevance in order to support HR-executives to manage and to benefit from the existence of the widespread VC phenomenon. Academic research is important because the existence and usage of VC is no self-evident panacea for communication, information, and relationship disorders. In contrast, being untrained and unaware in the handling, VC application or participation may result in undesired, costly outcomes. Thus, beside a rigorous research approach and implications for future research, VCHR-research should offer explicit practical implications. Often, practical implications are too general and of minor use (´Managers must foster trust and interactivity to support participation and commitment as prerequisites for VC-success.´). It is useful to transfer available VC-knowledge into the HRM-context in order to create new context-specific, quite explicit knowledge in form of specific design and management scenarios instead of producing scenarios adequate for other contexts or rather general design and management principles [4]. Although being discussed controversially, it seems purposeful that useful implications are co-developed by practice and research [45]. Thus, research is ideally problem-initiated and based on valid academic approaches [4]. So, applied research approaches should meet academic standards and fit the (practice-oriented) explanation aim. Yet, co-developed management knowledge – termed either as problem-initiated research or evidence-based management – cannot release entirely the tension between rigor (general knowledge) and relevance (contextual knowledge) so that an increase in one of the paired aspects is only obtained at the expense of the other. In sum, the existing modicum of VCHR-research is based only on few scattered studies and conceptualizations. This portrays a developing research area as currently neither a common definition or research framework nor a critical review of hitherto research results is available. The following subchapter intends to lead to problem-initiated research by which implications for practice and future research can be derived likewise. 215 VC-research does not differ from other research fields in regard to basic approach options whose essential selection criteria is the explanation aim. Thus, encircled by explanation aim and implications, options in regard to perspective, definition, typology, theory, and method are considered in detail. 3.1 Perspectives The multidisciplinary nature of VCHR implicitly effectuates multiple perspective taking and is in favor of a multidisciplinary research approach [99]. Nevertheless, it seems advisable to explicate the respective focus to distinguish different research endeavors. The social perspective focuses on the interpersonal relationships of the participants. The technical or design perspective reflects either the information and communication technology (ICT)-structure or the strategic management. Systems and applications are frequently regarded as a prerequisite and thus neglected in the discussion of the social and economic perspective. This results in a heterogeneous comprehension of the VC- term and rather general implications for VC-design and -management. Finally, the economic perspective focuses contingent economic benefits and costs of participation and usage. Although it is possible to depict different perspectives conceptually, they are obviously intertwined. Basically, VC are social entities (communities) which are realized on a technical basis (virtuality) and as such are socio-technical phenomena. This results in discussions on the societal impact of VC and a great number of research contributions on the attitude, intentions, and behavior of participants. Along with the increasing usage, also the economic impact became apparent and VC were considered within a socio-(technical-)economic perspective, which pairs social and economic variables [41]. With respect to the economic perspective, existing or missing affective, social aspects are found to influence VC-success [e.g. 8, 16, 21, 27, 100, 106, 126], system characteristics [e.g. 81, 82, 86], and rather cognitive benefit-cost evaluations [e.g. 10, 53, 107]. VC-research in the context of marketing and e-commerce particularly explores the impact of VC on the consumer decision process (brand communities) [e.g. 9, 12, 30, 78, 91, 92, 97, 108]. 3.2 Definition There is no single VC-definition due to respective perspectives and application scenarios as well as different concepts on the understanding of community and reality [e.g. 44]. This also aggravates VCHR-research, as common VC-definitions are too context-specific and restrictive whereas potential synonyms (e.g. social media, web 2.0) are imprecise. Further conceptualization is definitely needed to shape a definition attended by an adequate set of characteristics to develop a likewise adequate typology. For that, some basic considerations are suggested to enhance consistent future research. VCHR are defined as groups of HR-actors who predominantly utilize web-based ICT to discuss HR-relevant topics. Thus, actors, ICT, and discussion (as a specific of transaction) are the main dimensions of VCHR. Actors are applicants, employees, and HR-executives who are engaged in HR-relevant transactions. Applicants are company- external actors whose actions are pre-contractual. Employees are company-internal actors whose actions are post-contractual. The term ´HR-executives´ is a subsumption of company-internal actors, i.e. either line managers or managers of the HR-department, and company-external actors, e.g. HR-consultants. Actors are in particular characterized by the degree of their interpersonal belonging. Access to web-based ICT is possible via 216 Internet, Intranet, or Extranet. The technical core is based on community-oriented applications. Whereas information applications (e.g. search engine, profile engine, rating scales, and file sharing applications) deliver important community-supporting functions, reciprocal communication applications (discussion boards, weblogs with comment functions, webchats) are prerequisites for dialogue-oriented communication and discussion. Depending on the definition, also a combination of both application categories may form a VC in a broader sense, which then can be depicted by related terms such as web 2.0, computer-mediated communication, or social media. VC- specific transactions are basically discussions and topics could either be HR-function- specific (e.g. recruitment including marketing and pre-selection, development, or relationship-oriented leadership) or HR-function-comprehensive (e.g. HR- administration and -strategy). Further, two different transaction objects can be distinguished. Discussions can be specified as exchange of information or exchange of social goods (e.g. recognition, sense of belonging) in the HR-context. Figure 2 displays the fundamental characteristics of VCHR. Dimension Attribute Value Actors Participants Applicants Employees HR-executives HR-consultants Interpersonal Belonging Closely-coupled Loosely-coupled System Access Internet Extranet Intranet Communication Application Discussion Board Weblog Webchat Transaction HR-topic Function-specific Function-comprehensive Transaction Object Information Socials Figure 2: Fundamental Characteristics of VCHR. 3.3 Typology Based on the proposed fundamental characteristics, five ideal VC HR-types are determined. The proposed typological terms ground on actors´ relationships. This is only one, yet practicable and common possibility of denomination in analogy to terminology in other disciplines. A distinction is made between company-external (indicated by ´ex´) and company-internal (indicated by ´in´) types. Company external virtual applicant communities (A2Aex) are loosely-coupled groups of applicants who exchange information on future employers, positions, and working conditions which can provide decision support and a basis for negotiation. Participation is voluntary and publicly accessible via the Internet. Common applications are discussion boards or weblogs. Virtual applicant communities affect recruitment. Applicants benefit from peer-information on application proceedings and from being better prepared for interviews. Companies risk a loss in their informational preeminence and might want to observe applicants´ discussions in order to detect comments which negatively impact the employer reputation. But they also might benefit from advantages in the pre-selection process if they have, dependent on the respective business model offered by the community operator, access to applicant profiles and contact data. Examples are [62, 67, 71]. Company-external virtual HR-to-applicant communities (HR2Aex) are loosely-coupled groups of HR-representatives and applicants who exchange information in the context of personnel marketing and pre-selection. Participation is based on the company´s 217 strategy and thus most likely obligatory for HR-representatives and voluntary for applicants. HR2Aex are publicly (Internet) or partly-publicly (Extranet) accessible. Common ICT-applications are weblogs and webchats. HR2Aex support recruitment. Company and applicants benefit from an exchange which can be decoupled from time and place in case of asynchronous communication applications and from supporting visual cues e.g. in case of synchronous communication in virtual world environments. Restrictions are apparent in regard to the verification of identity. Examples are [61, 66, 69]. Virtual HR communities (HR2HRex/HR2HRin) are comparatively persistent and closely- coupled groups of HR-representatives. Discussions can be either function-specific or function-comprehensive and have the purpose to exchange expert information and social support to enhance operational and strategic HR-tasks. Participation in and access to HR2HR depends on the operator. In case that a HR-association or specific company operates the community, the access usually is restricted to members. Discussion boards on the Internet are common applications. As an assumption, HR2HR are beneficial to HR-representatives as they offer membership in an expert community which can positively influence task-specific and relationship-oriented leadership performance. Company-external examples are [59, 60, 63, 68, 70]. Virtual employee communities (E2Eex/E2Ein) are groups of employees who exchange information and social support in a broad range of issues relevant for employees. Discussions are rather function-comprehensive and include working conditions (e.g. workplace organization, compensation), personal and occupational development as well as other occupational challenges (e.g. work-life balance, workplace bullying). The range of issues depends on the operator and declared purpose of the community. External operators may allow a more diversified discussion while internal communities may be task-specific or generally restricted to issues which do not conflict formal and informal company-specific policies. As E2E appear as a highly diversified type, participation and access as well applications also depend on operator and purpose. E2E in particular affect development and leadership. In regard to development, E2E could be formal relationships in e-learning concepts or rather informal relationships in knowledge management, denominated as knowledge communities or communities of practice. In regard to leadership, also company-external E2E are of particular interest, as they can resemble an outspoken rumor mill and thus serve as employee complaint sites (also: gripe boards) where employees share their experiences with working conditions and leadership styles with respective negative consequences (irritation or legal action) for the involved parties [9, 115]. Also, new communication options for formal or informal unionization appear [e.g. 47, 96]. The assumption is that employees benefit from the extended option of informational exchange and social support while companies need to understand VC-dynamics and make media-usage and monitoring policies carefully. Company-external examples are [58, 64, 65]. Company-internal virtual HR-to-employee communities (HR2Ein) are rather closely- coupled groups of HR representatives and employees who exchange information and social support in the context of development and (relationship-oriented) leadership. Participation is basically voluntary yet dependent on company-specific structures and strategies. Access is granted to company-internal members only. While diverse applications are optional in the Intranet, webchats become a trend in those virtual workplaces using virtual world technologies. Given that HR-actors include trainers, HR2Ein enhance training and development options in knowledge intensive companies as well as in the virtual workplace. In regard to leadership, occupational support and 218 recognition can positively influence employee satisfaction and commitment. Due to its company-internal status, equally to E2Ein and HR2HRin, examples can be given only in case study approaches. Other conceptual types are out of the scope of a general analysis. E2A ex is a rather uncommon relationship, as there is no specific need for exchange. In the case that employees are exploited for personnel marketing and recruitment purposes, this relationship can be subsumed under HR2Aex. Similarly, the delineation of HR2Eex is of minor relevance. Virtual discussions on industrial relations are held within each group (HR2HR or E2E), company-internally (HR2Ein), or between HR-actors and counselors (lawyers or mediators) who however do not fit the HR-notion. 3.4 Theories Although the review displayed a marginal theory-based foundation and this might be an indicator for explorative research instead of a lack in rigor, benefits could be derived from an intensified consideration of theory application found in general VC-research. In short, sociological as well as media- and ICT-related theories are already applied in VC- research, while economic theories are underrepresented although their examination might shed more light on costs and benefits of VCHR participation and usage. Basically, VC are kinds of relationships. The intention of respective research endeavour then is to a) to describe aspects of the relationships, b) to explain aspects of the relationships, and/or c) to compare VC relationships to other (non-)mediated relationships. To this, researchers can rely on a heterogeneous pool of theories which may be strictly applied, tested, or extended. Theories may stem from media and IT sciences, sociology, as well as business administration and economics. Yet, the classification of single theories to a certain perspective is rather difficult due to the multidisciplinary nature of VC and respective research. With regard to a social perspective, social network theories [e.g. 51], small world theory [90], social capital theory [e.g. 24, 87], and Social Cognitive Theory [e.g. 11] can be transferred to VC-research e.g. in order to emphasize the need to embed ICT into the social structure [72], to understand forms of social capital in VC in comparison to physical communities [28], to explain implications of VC on social engagement [e.g. 16, 75] and factors of information sharing in VC [22, 89, 127]. Further, theories of social presence [111] and social translucence of technology [39] reflect VC-design in order to its ability to generate virtual social cues – visibility, awareness, accountability, social context – in the absence of physical social cues [103]. While on the one hand, former lacks of social cues in text-based VC [123] are mitigated by the availability of VC-supporting visualization options (e.g. buddy lists, virtual worlds), on the other hand, the fit of the specified traditional theories must be discussed in regard to new strategies in relationship building and delivery of social and emotional cues in VC [23]. VC are exposed to a process of evolution and can be examined by respective models [e.g. 98]. This is to explore life cycles in regard to different dimensions, such as VC-phases (e.g. early, mature, dissolving), structures (e.g. degree of trust, commitment), and memberships (e.g. lurker, regular, senior). With regard to the socio-technical-economic perspective, such theories are to be considered that potentially relate media characteristics and ICT usage to organizational behavior and outcomes. Gupta & Kim 2007 [54] apply the theory of reasoned action [46] and technology acceptance model TAM [120] combined with attitude-behavior theory [43] to explore cognitive as well as affective determinants on attitude and 219 behavior. Lin 2008 [86] applies the IS success model [31] to identify system characteristics and social factors which influence member loyalty as an indicator for VC-success. Also of interest are the uses and gratifications approach [18], theories of media choice [26, 32], and adaptive structuration theory [33, 93] to explain media usage [107] as well as to explore task-specific and contextual effects of VC-usage [7, 20, 23, 74]. Although at least transaction cost effects are mentioned [52, 127], economic theories are not applied. Yet, also economic theories might be beneficial for VC-research as e.g. transaction cost theory [125] offers an explanation for VCHR-existence and principal agent theory [2, 57] supports the analysis of hierarchical structures in general and trust and incentives in this hierarchical relationships in particular. 3.5 Methods Although the review already displayed a variety of methods, insights into general VC- research can help to consider specified options. Thus, a selection of methods is presented which also could be considered in VCHR-research endeavors. Adaptations of traditional methods might be necessary in particular due to the fact of a web-based research object [e.g. 13, 48, 73, 79, 88] but also due to organizational settings [e.g. 113]. With regard to the socio-technical perspective, common data analysis methods which are basically based on observation and transcripts are social network analysis [e.g. 116, 122] in order to link concepts of social and technical networks [e.g. 50, 123] and netnography (as a standardized approach in contrast to online or virtual ethnography) with special regard to interpretive analysis of consumer behavior in cyberspace [77, 79]. Further and partly intertwined with these methods, logfile analysis [112, 117], data mining [94], and other automated methods, e.g. chatbots and polls [49] are applied to gain insight into VC-structures. Further, modeling serves to illustrate causality in particular between VC-usage and VC participants´ behavior. With regard to the economic perspective, this is attached to economic relevant measures (e.g. commitment, success). Here structural equation modeling (SEM) analyzed with LISREL [22, 34, 53, 86, 100, 127], AMOS [119], Partial Least Square Analysis (PLS) [19], and Bayesian Belief Networks (BBN) [28] have already been applied. 4 Conclusion The paper intended to depict the hitherto neglected e-HRM subset of VCHR – which are web-based and community-oriented discussions with relevance to HRM. VCHR-research is considered to be of relevance as there is practical evidence of the phenomenon in form of virtual applicant communities, virtual HR-to-applicant communities, virtual HR communities, virtual employee communities, and virtual HR-to-employee communities. Although VC-research is abundant, the review found that HR-specific contributions are scarce, context-specific and not integrated into a broader framework. Faced the practical evidence, further research is desirable in order to structure the complexity of the phenomenon. A framework might spur VCHR-research and puts emphasis on the fit between explanation aim, perspective taking, definition, typology, theory, method, and implications. Future research endeavors might include: further definition and typology in particular in contrast to concepts such as social media, social networking, web 2.0 with HRM- relevance, VCHR (functional) scenarios, business models, and prototypes, impacts of 220 not-controllable types, this is external virtual applicant or employee communities which are out of the reach of explicit organizational control yet with potential impact on HRM strategies and processes, future technical developments in regard to the virtual workplace and virtual life, e.g. the impact of increasing virtual world applications. In sum, one crucial aspect of the rigor vs. relevance debate is the general choice of a leading principle, this is if the existing gap between rigor and relevance is (intended to) be bridgeable or if it is not [45]. In case of VCHR, one might favor the position that the rigor vs. relevance gap needs to be bridged as the undeniable existence of VCHR faces an underrepresented research body. To extend the latter might serve to efficiently handle the management of and participation in VC in the context of HRM. References [1] Akkirman, A.D. & Harris, D.L. (2005). Organizational Communication Satisfaction in the Virtual Workplace. Journal of Management Development, 24(5), 397-409. [2] Alchian, A. & Demsetz, H. (1972). Production, Information Costs, and Economic Organization. American Economic Review, 62(5), 777-95. [3] Anderson, K. (1999). Internet-based Model of Distance Education. Human Resource Development International, 2(3), 259-262. [4] Aram, J.D. & Salipante, P.F. (2003). Bridging Scholarship in Management: Epistemological Reflections. British Journal of Management, 14, 189-205. [5] Ardichvili, A. (2008). Learning and Knowledge Sharing in Virtual Communities of Practice: Motivators, Barriers and Enablers. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 10, 541-554. [6] Armstrong, A. & Hagel III, J. (1995). Real Profits from Virtual Communties. The McKinsey Quarterly, 3, 126-141. [7] Avolio, B.J., Kahai, S.S. & Dodge, George E. (2000). E-Leadership: Implications For Theory, Research, and Practice. Leadership Quarterly, 11(4), 615-668. [8] Bagozzi, R.P. & Dholakia, U.M. (2002). Intentional Social Action in Virtual Communities. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 16(2), 2-21. [9] Bailey, A.A. (2004). thiscompanysucks.com: The Use of the Internet in Negative Consumer-to-Comsumer Articulations. Journal of Marketing Communications, 10, 169-182. [10] Balasubramanian, S. & Mahajan, V. (2001). The Economic Leverage of the Virtual Community. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 5(3), 103-110. [11] Bandura, A. (1986). Social Foundations of Thought and Action - A Social Cognitive Theory. Prentice Hall. [12] Barnes, S. & Mattsson, J. (2008). Brand Value in Virtual Worlds: An Axiological Approach. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 9(3), 195-206. [13] Batinic, B., Reips, U.-D. & Bosnjak, M. (2002). Online Social Sciences. Hogrefe & Huber. 221 [14] Benbasat, I. & Zmud, R.W. (1999). Empirical Research in Information Systems: The Practice of Relevance. MIS Quarterly, 23 (1), 3-16. [15] Birchall, D. & Giambona, G. (2007). SME Manager Development in Virtual Learning Communities and the Role of Trust: A Conceptual Study. Human Resource Development International, 10(2), 187-202. [16] Blanchard, A.L. & Markus, L.M. (2004). The Experienced "Sense" of a Virtual Community: Characteristics and Processes. The DATA BASE for Advances in Information Systems, 35(1), 65-79. [17] Blanchard, A. & Horan, T. (1998). Virtual Community and Social Capital. Social Science Computer Review, 16, 239-307. [18] Blumler, J.G. & Katz, E. (1974). The Uses of Mass Communications: Current Perspectives on Gratifications Research. Sage Publications. [19] Bock, G.-W., Ng, W.-L. & Shin, Y. (2008). The Effect of a Perceived Leader´s Influence on the Motivation of the Members of Nonwork-Related Virtual Communities. IEEE Transaction on Engineering Management, 55(2), 292-303. [20] Boland, R.J.Jr. & Tenkasi, R.V. (1995). Perspective Making and Perspective Tanking in Communities of Knowing. Organization Science, 6(4), 350- 372. [21] Casaló, L.V., Flavián, C. & Guinalíu, M. (2008). Fundaments of Trust Management in the Development of Virtual Communities. Management Review News, 31(5), 324-338. [22] Chiu, C.-M., Hsu, M.-H. & Wang, E.T.G. (2006). Understanding Knowledge Sharing in Virtual Communities: An integration of Social Capital and Social Cognitive Theories. Decision Support Systems, 42, 1872-1888. [23] Cho, H.-K., Trier, M. & Kim, E. (2005). The Use of Instant Messaging in Working Relationship Development: A Case Study. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10(4), Article 17. [24] Coleman, J.S. (1988). Social Capital in the Creation of Human Capital. American Journal of Sociology, 94, 95-120. [25] Cortini, M. (2009). New Horizons in CS and Employee/Employer Relationship: Challenges and Risks of Corporate Weblogs. Employee Responsibiliites & Rights Journal, 21(4), 291-303. [26] Daft, R.L. & Lengel, R.H. (1984). Information Richness: A New Approach to Managerial Behavior and Organizational Design. Cummings, L.L. & Staw, B.M. (Eds.), Research in Organizational Behavior, 6, JAI Press, 191-223. [27] Daneshgar, F. & Ho, S. (2008). Sociological Factors Affecting Trust Development in Virtual Communities. International Journal of Networking and Virtual Organisations, 5(1), 51-63. [28] Daniel, B.K. (2009). Social Capital Modeling in Virtual Communities: Bayesian Belief Network Approaches. IGI. [29] Davenport, E. & Hall, H. (2002). Organizational Knowledge and Communities of Practice. Annual Review of Information Science and Technology, 36, 171-227. [30] De Valck, K., van Bruggen, G.H. & Wierenga, B. (2009). Virtual Communties: A Marketing Perspective. Decision Support Systems, 47, 185-203. 222 [31] DeLone, W.H. & McLean, E.R. (2003). The DeLone and McLean Model of Information Systems Success: A Ten-Year Update. Journal of Management Information Systems, 19(4), 9-30. [32] Dennis, AR./ Valacich, J.S. (1999). Rethinking Media Richness: Towards a Theory of Media Synchronicity. Proceedings of the 32nd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS). [33] Desanctis, G. & Poole, M.S. (1994). Capturing the Complexity in Advanced Technology Use: Adaptive Structuration Theory. Organization Science, 5(2), 121- 147. [34] Dholakia, U.M., Bagozzi, R.P. & Klein Pearo, L. (2004). A Social Influence Model of Consumer Participation in Network- and Small-group-based Virtual Communities. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 21, 241-263. [35] Diederichsen, A. (2009). Conception, Categorization, and Impact of HR-Relevant Virtual Communities. Torres-Coronas, T. & Arias-Oliva, M. (Eds.). Encyclopedia of Human Resources Information Systems: Challenges in e-HRM, Information Science Reference, 154-160. [36] Dubé, L., Bourhis, A. & Jacob, Réal (2006). Towards a Typology of Virtual Communities of Practice. Interdisciplinary Journal of Information, Knowledge, and Management, 1, 69-93. [37] Ebner, W., Leimeister, J.M. & Krcmar, H. (2009). Community Engineering for Innovations: The Ideas Competition as a Method to Nurture a Virtual Community for Innovations. R&D Management, 39(4), 342-356. [38] Ensher, E.A., Heun, C. & Blanchard, A. (2003). Online Mentoring and Computer- mediated Communication: New Directions in Research. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 63, 264-288. [39] Erickson, T. & Kellogg, W.A. (2000). Social Translucence: An Approach to Designing Systems that Support Social Processes. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, 7(1), 59–83. [40] Ettinger, E., Widerom, C. & Van Dick, R. (2008). Transforming Exchange-based Job Boards into Lasting Career Communities. Proceedings of the 11th Conference on Business Information, Austria, 109-116. [41] Etzioni, A. (2003). Toward a new socio-economic paradigm. Socio-Economic Review, 1, 105-134. [42] Fairbank, J.F., Spangler, W.E. & Williams, S.D. (2003). Motivating Creatitivity Through a Computer-mediated Employee Suggestion Management System. Behaviour & Information Technology, 22(5), 305-314. [43] Fazio, R.H, Powell, M. & Williams C. (1989). The Role of Attitude Accessibility in the Attitude-to-Behavior Process. Journal of Consumer Research, 16(3), 280- 289. [44] Fernback, J. (1999). There Is a There There: Notes Toward a Defintion in Cybercommunity. Jones, S. (Ed.), Doing Internet Research: Critical Issues and Methods for Examining the Net, Sage, 203-220. [45] Fincham, R. & Clark, T. (2009). Introduction: Can We Bridge the Rigour- Relevance Gap?. Journal of Management Studies, 46(3), 510-515. 223 [46] Fishbein, M. & Ajzen, I. (1975). Thinking, Attitude, Intention and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research, Addison-Wesley. [47] Freeman, RB. (2004). The Road to Union Renaissance in the United States. Wunnava, P.V. (Ed.), The Changing Role of Unions: New Forms of Representation, M.E. Sharpe, 3-21. [48] Garton, L., Haythornthwaite, C. & Wellman, B. (1999). Studying On-Line Social Networks. Jones, S. (Ed.), Doing Internet Research: Critical Issues and Methods for Examining the Net, Sage, 75-105. [49] Ginsburg, M. (2001). Realizing a Framework to Create, Support, and Understand Virtual Communities. Infonomics/Merit Workshop on Digitisation of Commerce: e-Intermediation, Holland. [50] Granitz, N.A. & Ward, J.C. (1996). Virtual Community: A Sociocognitive Analysis. Advances in Consumer Research, 23(1), 161-166. [51] Granovetter, M.S. (1973). The Strength of Weak Ties. American Journal of Sociology, 78(6), 1360-1380. [52] Gulati, R., Nohria, N. & Zaheer, A. (2000). Strategic Networks. Strategic Management Journal, 21, 203-215. [53] Gupta, S. & Kim, H.-W. (2004). Virtual Community: Concepts, Implications, and Future Research Directions. Proceedings of the Tenth Americas Conference on Information Systems, 2679-2687. [54] Gupta, S. & Kim, H.-W. (2007). Developing the Commitment to Virtual Community: the Balanced Effects of Cognition and Affect. Information Resources Management Journal, 20(1), 28-45. [55] Hagel III, J. & Armstrong, A.G. (1997). Net Gain: Expanding Markets through Virtual Communities. The McKinsey Quarterly, 1, 141-153. [56] Herring, S.C., Kouper, I., Paolillo, J.C. & Scheidt, L.A. (2005). Conversations in the Blogosphere: An Analysis "From the Bottom Up”. Proceedings of the 38th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. [57] Holmstrom, B. & Milgrom, P. (1994). The Firm as an Incentive System. The American Economic Review, 84(4), 972-991. [58] http://biofind.com/rumor, 01-17-2010. [59] http://community.astd.org/eve/forums, 01-17-2010. [60] http://community.ere.net/, 01-17-2010. [61] http://networkinworld.jobs/, 01-17-2010. [62] http://targetjobs.co.uk, 01-17-2010. [63] http://www.citehr.com/, 01-17-2010. [64] http://www.endicottalliance.org/discussion.html, 01-17-2010. [65] http://www.infirmation.com/bboard/clubs.tcl?topic=RealGAs, 01-17-2010. [66] http://www.jobsite.co.uk/insider/, 01-17-2010. [67] http://www.monster.com, 01-17-2010. [68] http://www.onrec.com/forum/, 01-17-2010. 224 [69] http://www.semperllc.com/metaverse/, 01-17-2010. [70] http://www.shrm.org/Communities/MemberDiscussionArea/Pages/default.aspx, 01-17-2010. [71] http://www.vault.com/, 01-17-2010. [72] Huysman, M. (2004). Design Requirements for Knowledge-Sharing Tools: A Need for Social Capital Analysis. Huysman, M. & Wulf, V. (Eds.), Social Capital and Information Technology, MIT Press, 187-207. [73] Jones, S. (1999) (Ed.). Doing Internet Research: Critical Issues and Methods for Examining the Net, Sage Publications. [74] Kahai, S.S., Carroll, E. & Jestice, R. (2007). Team Collaboration in Virtual Worlds. The DATA BASE for Advances in Information Systems, 38(4), 61-68. [75] Kavanaugh, A., Reese, D.D., Carroll, J.M. & Rosson, M.Beth (2003). Weak Ties in Networked Communities. Huysman, M., Wenger, E. & Wulf, V. (Eds.), Communities and Technologies - Proceedings of the First International Conference on Communities and Technologies, Kluwer, 265-286. [76] Kim, A.J. (2000). Community Building on the Web: Secret Strategies for Successful Online Communities, Peachpit Press. [77] Kozinet, R.V. (1998). On Netnography: Initial Reflections on Consumer Research Inverstigations of Cyberculture. Advances in Consumer Research, 25, 366-371. [78] Kozinet, R.V. (1999). E-Tribalized Marketing?: The Strategic Implications of Virtual Communities of Consumption. European Management Journal, 17(3), 252-264. [79] Kozinet, R.V. (2002). The Field Behind the Screen: Using Netnography for Marketing Research in Online Communities. Journal of Marketing Research, 39, 61-72. [80] Laumer, S., Eckhardt, A. & Weitzel, T. (2008). Recruiting IT Professionals in a Virtual World, Conference Proceedings PACIS, China. [81] Lechner, U. & Hummel, J. (2002). Business Models and System Architectures of Virtual Communities: From a Sociological Phenomenon to Peer-to-Peer Architectures. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 6(3), 41-53. [82] Leimeister, J.M., Sidiras, P. & Krcmar, H. (2006). Exploring Success Factors of Virtual Communities: The Perspectives of Members and Operators. Journal of Organizational Computing and Electronic Commerce, 16(3+4), 279-300. [83] Li, H. (2004). Virtual Community Studies: A Literature Review, Synthesis and Research Agenda. Proceedings of the Americas Conference on Information Systems, New York, August, 2708-2715. [84] Licklider, J.C.R. & Taylor, R. (1968). The Computer as a Communication Device. Science and Technology, April. Reprinted: Digital Research Center (1990): In memoriam: J.C.R. Licklider (1915-1990), 21-41. [85] Lievens, F. & Harris, M.M. (2003). Research on Internet Recruiting and Testing: Current Status and Future Directions. International Review of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 18, 131-165. 225 [86] Lin, H.-F. (2008). Determinants of Successful Virtual Communities: Contributions from System Characteristics and Social Factors. Information & Management, 45, 522-527. [87] Lin, N., Cook, K. & Burt, R.S. (2001). Social Capital: A Theory of Social Structure and Action, Cambridge University Press. [88] Maclaran, P. & Catterall, M. (2002). Researching the Social Web: Marketing Information from Virtual Communities. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 319- 326. [89] McLure Wasko, M. & Faraj, S. (2005). Why should I share? Examining Social Capital and Knowledge Contribution in Electronic Networks of Practice. MIS Quarterly, 29(3), 35-57. [90] Milgram, S. (1967). The Small World Problem. Psychology Today, Mai, 60–67. [91] Muniz, A.M.Jr. & O´Guinn, T.C. (2001). Brand Community. Journal of Consumer Research, 27(March), 412-432. [92] Okleshen, C. & Grossbart, S. (1998). Usenet Groups, Virtual Community and Consumer Behavior. Advances in Consumer Research, 25(1), 276-282. [93] Orlikowski, W.J. (2000). Using technology and constituting structures: a practice lens for studying technology in organizations. Organization Science, 11(4), 404- 428. [94] Oudshoff, A.M., Bosloper, I.E., Klos, T.B. & Spaanenburg, Lambert (2003). Knowledge Discovery in Virtual Community Texts: Clustering Virtual Communities.Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, 14, 13-24. [95] Parker, P., Arthur, M.B. & Inkson, K. (2004). Career Communities: A Preliminary Exploration of Membber-Defined Career Support Structures. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 25(4), 489-514. [96] Pinnock, S.R. (2005). Organizing Virtual Environments: National Union Deployment of the Blog and New Cyberstrategies. WorkingUSA: The Journal for Labor and Society, 8, 457-468. [97] Pitta, D.A. & Fowler, D. (2005). Internet Community Forums: An Untapped Resource for Consumer Marketers. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 22(5), 265- 274. [98] Pliskin, N. & Romm, C.T. (1997). The Impact of E-Mail on the Evolution of a Virtual Community during a Strike. Information & Management, 32, 245-254. [99] Porter, C.E. (2004). A Typology of Virtual Communities: A Multi-Disciplinary Foundation for Future Research. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10(1), Article 3. [100] Porter, C.E. & Donthu, N. (2008). Cultivating Trust and Harvesting Value in Virtual Communities. Management Science, 54(1), 113-128. [101] Preece, J. & Maloney-Krichmar, D. (2005). Online Communities: Design, Theory, and Practice. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10(4), Artikel 1. 226 [102] Quan-Haase, A., Cothrel, J. & Wellman, B. (2005). Instant Messaging for Collaboration: A Case Study of a High-Tech Firm. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10(4), Article 13. [103] Raybourn, E.M., Kings, N. & Davies, John (2003). Adding Cultural Signposts in Adaptive Community-based Virtual Environments. Interacting with Computers, 15, 91-107. [104] Reeves, B., Malone, T., Yee, N., Cheng, H., Abecassis, D., Cadwell, T., Abbey, M., Scarborough, J., Read, L. & Roy, S. (2007). Leadership in Games and at Work: Implications for the Enterprise of Massively Multiplayer Online Role- Playing Games, Report, Palo Alto: Seriosity Inc. [105] Rheingold, H. (2000). The Virtual Community: Homesteading on the Electronic Frontier, MIT Press. [106] Ridings, C., Gefen, D. & Arinze, B. (2002). Some Antecedents and Effects of Trust in Virtual Communities. Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 11(3-4), 271-295. [107] Sangwan, S. (2005). Virtual Community Success: A Uses and Gratifications Perspective. Proceedings of the 38th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. [108] Schlosser, A.E. (2003). Special Session Summary. Come Together, Right Now, Virtually: An Examination into Online Communities. Advances in Consumer Research, 30, 192-195. [109] Schoemaker, M. (2006). Shaping Communties of Work, An Organisational Development Approach. International Journal of Action Research, 2(2), 243-263. [110] Shaw, B., Scheufele, D. & Catalano, S. (2007). The Role of Presence Awareness in Organizational Communication: An Exploratory Field Experiment. Behavior & Information Technology, 26(5), 377-384. [111] Short, J., Williams, E. & Christie, B. (1976). The Social Psychology of Telecommunications. Wiley & Sons. [112] Soroka, V., Jacovi, M. & Ur, S. (2003). We Can See You: A Study of Communities´ Invisible People through ReachOut. Huysman, M., Wenger, E. & Wulf, V. (Eds.), Communities and Technologies - Proceedings of the First International Conference on Communities and Technologies Kluwer, 65-79. [113] Stocker, A. & Tochtermann, K. (2008). Investigating Weblogs in Small and Medium Enterprises: An Exploratory Case Study. Proceedings of the 11th Conference on Business Information, Austria, 95-107. [114] Strohmeier, S. (2007). Research in e-HRM: Review and Implication. Human Resource Management Review, 17(1), 19-37. [115] Taras, D.G. & Gesser, A. (2003). How New Lawyers Use E-Voice to Drive Firm Compensation: The "Greedy Associates" Phenomenon. Journal of Labor Research, 14(1), 9-29. [116] Tichy, N., Tushman, M. & Fombrun, C. (1979). Social Network Analysis For Organizations. Academy of Management Review, 4. 507-519. [117] Tyler, J.R., Wilkinson, D.M. & Huberman, B.A. (2003). Email as Spectroscopy: Automated Discovery of Community Structure within Organizations. Huysman, 227 M., Wenger, E. & Wulf, V. (Eds.), Communities and Technologies - Proceedings of the First International Conference on Communities and Technologies Kluwer, 81-96. [118] Valentine, S., Fleischman, G.M., Sprague, R. & Godkin, A.L. (2010). Exploring the Ethicality of Firing Employees who Blog. Human Resource Management, 49(1), 87-108. [119] Van den Hooff, B., Elving, W., Meeuwsen, J.M. & Dumoulin, C. (2003). Knowledge Sharing in Knowledge Communities. Huysman, M., Wenger, E. & Wulf, V. (Eds.), Communities and Technologies - Proceedings of the First International Conference on Communities and Technologies Kluwer, 119-141. [120] Venkatesh, V., Morris, M.G., Davis, G.B. & Davis, F.D. (2003). User Acceptance of Information Technology: Toward a Unified View. MIS Quarterly, 27(3), 425- 478. [121] Warisse Turner, J., Grube, J.A., Tinsley, C.H., Lee, C. & O´Pell, C. (2006). Exploring the Dominant Media: How Does Media Use Relfelct Organizational Norms and Affect Performance?. Journal of Business Communication, 43(3), 220- 250. [122] Watts, D.J. (2004). The "New" Science of Networks. Annual Review of Sociology, 30, 243-270. [123] Wellman, B., Salaff, J., Dimitrova, D., Garton, L., Gulia, M. & Haythornthwaite, C. (1996). Computer Networks as Social Networks: Collaborative Work, Telework, and Virtual Community. Annual Review of Sociology, 22, 213-238. [124] Wiesenfeld, B.M., Raghuram, S. & Garud, R. (2001). Organizational Identification Among Virtual Workers: The Role of Need for Affiliation and Perceived Work-based Social Support. Journal of Management, 27, 213-229. [125] Williamson, O.E. (1985). The Economic Institutions of Capitalism, The Free Press. [126] Wu, J.-J. & Tsang, A.S.L. (2008). Factors affecting Members´ Trust Belief and Behavior Intention in Virtual Communities. Behavior & Information Technology, 27(2), 115-125. [127] Wu, W.-P. (2008). Dimensions of Social Capital and Firm Competitiveness Improvement: the Mediating Role of Information Sharing. Journal of Management Studies 45(1), 122-146. [128] Zemliansky, P. & St.Amant, K. (2008) (Eds.). Handbook of Research on Virtual Workplaces and the New Nature of Business Practices, Information Science Reference. 228