Deviant Co-Creation: Unlocking Unexpected Value or Reputational Risk in Ideation Contests

Why It Matters

Understanding deviant co-creation is crucial for managing the inherent risks and opportunities in open innovation platforms. Firms must be prepared to identify and respond to both negative and potentially positive deviations from expected submissions to protect their brand and harness novel ideas.

Key Finding

Submissions in consumer idea contests can deviate from expectations in ways that are either harmful (leading to negative reactions and brand damage) or beneficial (sparking discussion and new ideas).

Key Findings

• Deviant co-creation in ideation contests includes both illegitimate and legitimate content.
• Legitimate deviant content can manifest as humorous, provocative, unique, or norm-violating submissions (technical or social).
• Destructive deviant content can lead to negative publicity and reputational damage.
• Constructive deviant content can foster positive engagement, idea development, and contribute to innovation potential.

Research Evidence

Aim: How can firms effectively manage deviant co-creation in consumer ideation contests to mitigate risks and leverage potential benefits?

Method: Netnography

Procedure: Researchers conducted a netnography study to observe and analyze user-generated content within consumer ideation contests, identifying patterns of deviant co-creation.

Context: Consumer ideation contests and open innovation platforms.

Design Principle

Embrace the unpredictable nature of crowdsourcing by establishing frameworks for managing emergent, non-conforming ideas.

How to Apply

When designing or managing an ideation contest, create clear guidelines for acceptable content while also preparing for unexpected submissions. Develop a tiered response system for different types of deviant content.

Limitations

The study's findings are based on observed online behavior, and the long-term impact of constructive deviance may vary.

Student Guide (IB Design Technology)

Simple Explanation: When you ask lots of people for ideas, some might give you weird or unexpected ideas. Some of these might be bad and cause problems, but others could be really good and lead to new inventions.

Why This Matters: This research helps understand the risks and rewards of letting the public contribute ideas, which is common in many design projects.

Critical Thinking: To what extent can 'destructive' deviant content be reframed or repurposed into constructive contributions, and what are the ethical considerations involved?

IA-Ready Paragraph: The management of consumer ideation contests requires an awareness of 'deviant co-creation,' where participants submit content that deviates from expected norms. This phenomenon can be either destructive, posing reputational risks, or constructive, offering novel insights and fostering innovation, as highlighted by Gatzweiler, Blažević, and Piller (2017).

Project Tips

• When designing a crowdsourcing platform, consider how to moderate and categorize user submissions.
• Think about how to encourage constructive 'deviance' while discouraging destructive behavior.

How to Use in IA

• Reference this study when discussing the management of user-generated content in innovation projects or the potential challenges of open design platforms.

Examiner Tips

• Demonstrate an understanding of the dual nature of user-generated content in collaborative design initiatives.

Independent Variable: Type of deviant co-creation (destructive vs. constructive), characteristics of the ideation contest.

Dependent Variable: User engagement, idea quality, firm reputation, discussion generation.

Controlled Variables: Platform design, contest rules, moderation policies, industry context.

Strengths

• Provides a novel conceptualization of deviant co-creation.
• Employs a relevant and insightful research method (netnography).

Critical Questions

• How do cultural differences impact the perception and manifestation of deviant co-creation?
• What specific moderation strategies are most effective in managing destructive deviant content while encouraging constructive forms?

Extended Essay Application

• Investigate the impact of different moderation strategies on the nature and volume of deviant co-creation in a simulated online ideation environment.

Source

Dark Side or Bright Light: Destructive and Constructive Deviant Content in Consumer Ideation Contests · Journal of Product Innovation Management · 2017 · 10.1111/jpim.12369