The Evaporative Cooling Effect in Social Networks: Why High-Value Contributors Leave
2025-01-07
This blog post explores the 'evaporative cooling effect,' where high-value contributors leave a community due to lack of benefit, leading to a decline in community quality. It analyzes how factors like openness, community access mechanisms (e.g., paid membership or knowledge barriers), internal communication styles, and rewarding high contributors affect this effect. The author argues that 'evaporative cooling' is inevitable in community growth, and the key is to slow it down. The post suggests combining 'plaza' (easily expandable) and 'warren' (more stable) community structures to balance scalability and stability.
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