Encouraging Positive Online Communication in Open Source: The Drupal Community's Approach

The Drupal community is a thriving open-source community with many online conversations happening at any given time. However, as with any community, conflicts can arise, and the Drupal Community Working Group (CWG) is there to help mediate the situation.

In an article shared on opensource.com, titled "How to encourage positive online communication in your open source community," Michael Anello, Ruth Cheesley, and AmyJune Hineline discuss how the Drupal community is addressing negative online communication. The CWG is responsible for maintaining the community's health and often reminds community members of the Code of Conduct.

To make this process more efficient, the Drupal community currently has five nudges that community members can use depending on the situation. These nudges include reminding community members of inclusive language, gatekeeping knowledge, cultural differences, and escalating emotions. However, currently, using one of these nudges is a manual copy-paste process.

The CWG is discussing the possibility of providing tools for easier use, and they are also working on adding a sixth nudge for unhelpful or inauthentic comments. This nudge is aimed at discouraging users who add comments to a thread solely to gain a contribution credit on the issue.

Overall, prewritten nudges for various situations are useful prompts for members of any community to keep conversations productive and encouraging in a friendly way. The Drupal community is moving towards more positive and inclusive online communication by providing these nudges.