Critical Studies in Peer Production
CSPP is currently experiencing a transition. the current editorial team is forming a new project, "the journal of peer production". AS A RESULT PUBLICATION HAS BEEN DELAYED.
FEB, 2012Our second issue will feature the following research articles:
George Dafermos, "Authority in Peer Production: The Emergence of Governance in the FreeBSD Project"
Stefano De Paoli, Vincenzo D’Andrea and Maurizio Teli, "Why Free Software Is Not the Antonym of Commercial Software: Two Case Studies from Corporate and Volunteer Based Projects"
Francesca Musiani, "Caring About the Plumbing: On the Importance of Architectures in Social Studies of (Peer-to-Peer) Technology"
Mission statement
Critical Studies in Peer Production (CSPP) seeks high-quality contributions from researchers and practitioners of peer production. We understand peer production as a mode of commons-based and oriented production in which participation is voluntary and predicated on the self-selection of tasks. Notable examples are the collaborative development of Free Software projects and of the Wikipedia online encyclopedia.
Through the analysis of the forms, operations, and contradictions of peer producing communities in contemporary capitalist society, the journal aims to open up new perspectives on the implications of peer production for social change.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
- the political economy of peer production
- peer production and expertise
- critical theory and peer production
- peer production and exchange
- peer production and social movements
- peer production as an alternative to capitalism
- peer production and capitalist cooptation
- governance in peer projects
- peer production and ethics
- the peer production of hardware
- peer production and feminism
- peer production, industry and ecology
Submissions guidelines
CSPP will be published twice a year. All scientific contributions will be peer reviewed. Contributors are invited to follow the Harvard citation style and to submit papers using free software such as Open Office. Once papers have been accepted, it is the author's responsibility to format them in accordance with our specifications.
The journal welcomes submissions based on interdisciplinary approaches including information and computer sciences, law, economics, geography, history, communications, and sociology. CSPP accepts a variety of manuscripts. Please review the descriptions below and identify the submission type best suited to your intended submission.
- Research papers
- Research papers are theoretically driven, focusing on key facets of peer production, and reporting substantial findings. Suggested length: 8000 words. You may be interested to find out more about our open peer review process.
- Debates, essays and interviews
- We welcome testimonies, working papers and critical essays by peer production researchers and practitioners. Debates are essays by several authors expressing clearly contrasting viewpoints about a relevant issue. All these contributions should comprise 1000-3000 words.
- Conference reports
- These
contributions should also comprise 1000-3000 words. Suggested topics for conference organisers who wish to file a report include:
-
- Name and theme of the conference?
- What were your goals in organising this conference?
- Do you think those goals were met?
- What did you learn in organisational terms?
- With the benefit of hindsight, what would you do differently?
- Were there any particularly interesting, poetic or dramatic moments?
- What was your favorite presentation and why?
- Reviews
- We also seek reviews of relevant projects and of books analysing peer production processes. Reviews should be 500-1000 words.
The editor is happy to discuss other possibilities with potential contributors. Please use the contact form to get in touch.
