Crowdsourcing
College Board Big Idea 5.4
Definition
A method of gathering contributions from a large group of people to solve problems and complete complex tasks.
Crowdsourcing expands access to information.
Real-World Examples
- Wikipedia
- Spotify (user-curated playlists, data-based recommendations)
- Foldit (game where users help solve protein folding problems)
Types of Crowdsourcing
- Wisdom of the crowd: general crowdsourcing where a group makes a consensus decision
- Crowd creation: a website asks users for content or ideas
- Crowd voting: a company asks consumers to vote and choose the best option
- Crowdfunding: a group of people donates money to support a cause, project, or product