Mapping digital co-creation for urban communities and public places

Abstract

The new ICT paradigm, mobile communication, social media, Internet of Things and cloud computing, increasingly put the end user at the center of innovation processes, thus shifting the emphasis from technologies to people. The success stories of services such as Google, Wikipedia, and Facebook rely on their users to create value with Internet 2.0 tools. In the private sector, the paradigm has been conceptualized under Service Dominant Logic (SDL) and Open Innovation 2.0 approaches where the focus of co-creation is the value created for and by the users. The public sector implemented the change through the New Public Governance and Open Government initiatives, which suggest that the public value no longer needs to be created by the governments alone, but could be generated in collaboration between the public entities, private sector, civil society organizations or citizens (Quadruple Helix model). The co-creation concept fundamentally differs from traditional public engagement approach, while it focuses on the collective influence and responsibility of all stakeholders by creating the public good. The „bottom up“ co-creation processes in digital enabled urban communities are important enablers for implementing the smart and inclusive society vision. The modern communities not only involve the citizens into process of public value creation, but also influence the emergence and development of collective intelligence in the society. While traditional approaches to public engagement and governmental reforms remain relevant, this article focuses towards the growing potential of networked urban communities to solve their social problems. It expands co-creation field and provides theoretical framework for public spaces with a communitywide participation making use of creative, innovative and cooperative applications of ICT. The sample size for a web-based monitoring consist of 10 online urban communities in Lithuania, identified by the pilot research. The communities will be investigated as collective intelligence systems, which integrate all criteria inherent for such kind of systems (openness, dynamism, decentralisation, critical mass for “swarm effect”, etc.). The research results explain how different technological, organisational and other social factors influence on the quality of co-creation results.