(article) Does open source exclude people from different cultures?

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heather's picture

Does open source exclude people from different cultures?

http://stormyscorner.com/2011/09/does-open-source-exclude-high-context-c...

"As I think about developer engagement at Mozilla, I realize we need to have different plans for different cultures. "

Lots of good comments...

A quote:

High context cultures value personal relationships over process. You have to know someone before you can trust them and work with them. They also tend to be less explicit and rely more on tone of voice, gestures and even status to communicate. Typically Asian countries are more high context than Western countries. Think Korea and Japan.

Low context cultures are process driven. They rely on facts and processes. Their communication style is much more direct and action-orientated. They are orientated towards the individual rather than the group. Western cultures like the US and Germany are considered low context.

So if you start a project and send email to a bunch of folks and ask them to just jump in and contribute, which group do you think will get going more quickly? The low context culture folks. As long as you define the process and procedures, they are willing to work alone and with people they don’t know very well. That’s how open source works. So our projects are optimized for low context cultures.

Diversity and Outreach

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