[Air-l] Community "Critical Mass"?

[Chris Modzelewski]

Hello Everybody,

I've got a (hopefully) quick question: is anyone familiar with research 
into when an online community attains a "critical mass" and becomes 
self-sustaining?

In terms of community, I'm thinking of online communities such as 
wikipedia, YouTube, MySpace, etc. that specifically require 
participatory involvement. In terms of "critical mass" I'm thinking of 
audience size / reach, ratio of "posters" to lurkers, etc.

Does anyone know of research into this area? Any and all help would be 
greatly appreciated.

All the best,
Chris Modzelewski

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Chris Modzelewski
Emerging Analysis Corporation