ABSTRACT

This paper examines ICT-mediated knowledge development by comparing calls for papers (CfPs) and design contests ("spec work"). Both practices meet increasingly interdisciplinary knowledge needs of suppliers, users, and stakeholders, in heterogeneous spatial and temporal contexts enabled by global information infrastructures. It compares the two models to argue that original and optimal contributions sought in science are crucially supported by an under-recognized category of incremental "sufficient" work performed by a vast number of modestly adept contributors.