Why People Participate in Communities
It’s all about Safety and Power
I was recently invited into the Digital Marketer community to do an AMA. A member asked me “Why are people motivated to join communities?” Here was my answer (fleshed out for Medium)…
There are a lot of reasons that people join and become increasingly engaged in communities.
For a new member, it’s usually more transactional since they haven’t developed a sense of belonging yet. They might join for entertainment, connection, knowledge, support, etc. Over time, the value becomes more intrinsic.
I think what it truly boils down to is safety and power.
For millions of years, humans roamed the earth as hunters and gatherers in small, interdependent groups. If you weren’t part of a group, you were as good as dead. We still have the same brain, just in a different environment. We still seek community for safety.
If you’re in a group, you feel safe, both physically and emotionally (creating emotional safety is critical, especially in the digital age). A sense of community brings us safety and reduces stress.
Unless your group no longer accepts you and you feel threatened, no longer welcome in the community. You’ll look for a new group.
We also want our communities to be better than other groups (see social comparison phase of the “social identity theory”). If your group is better than other groups, it is in higher demand and can attract the highest quality members, making your community more powerful. The more powerful your community, the safer you are.
Within the community, you want to contribute and move up the ranks, because the higher up you are, the more power you’ll gain, the more the community values you, and the less likely it will be that you’ll be thrown out. When you’re a valued member of a community, you feel safe.
So to make this practical, if you’re building community:
1. curate it so people believe that the community is high quality
2. create an environment of emotional safety so people can feel comfortable being their true selves and show vulnerability
3. create opportunities for people to officially improve their status in the community
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