Examining the Need for Participation-Oriented Designs of Crowdsourcing Platforms: A Comparison of Contributors and Potential Contributors

Prior studies have suggested many participation-oriented designs (PODs) for crowdsourcing platforms to encourage and keep solver participation. However, we know little about how solvers evaluate these PODs, the evaluation differences between contributors and potential contributors who are both critical for platform development and the impact levels of PODs on solver satisfaction. To fill the gaps, this study employed the Kano model to evaluate the identified 27 PODs. Based on survey data from 198 contributors and 215 potential contributors, this study divided the PODs into 5 quality categories, i.e., must-be, one-dimensional, attractive, indifferent, and reverse quality. Meanwhile, we determined the categorizations of the PODs for contributors and potential contributors, respectively, and indicated their categorization differences in 15 PODs. Furthermore, using the customer satisfaction coefficient method, we established the impact level of each POD on solver satisfaction and then determined the PODs’ improvement priorities. This study expands the application of the Kano model and customer satisfaction coefficient method in crowdsourcing. In addition, the findings, on the one hand, allow for a more precise categorization and prioritization of the PODs presented by crowdsourcing platforms for solvers. On the other hand, they provide a reference for the future development of designs of crowdsourcing platforms in terms of solver satisfaction.