Distance and Attraction

Abstract

Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI), such as contributions to OpenStreetMap and geotagged Wikipedia articles, is often assumed to be produced locally. However, recent work has found that peer-produced VGI is frequently contributed by non-locals. We evaluate this approach across hundreds of content types from Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, and eBird, and show that these models can describe more than 90% of "VGI flows" for some content types. Our findings advance geographic HCI theory, suggesting some spatial mechanisms underpinning VGI production. We also discuss design implications that can help (a) human and algorithmic consumers of VGI evaluate the perspectives it contains and (b) address geographic coverage variations in these platforms (e.g. via more effective volunteer recruitment strategies).

Diagnosing the performance of human mobility models at small spatial scales using volunteered geographical information

“…Who contributes to OpenStreetMap and the biases of the data are important to consider. While more urban or populous locations are likely to have more detailed coverage [45,59,60], volunteered geographical information is still much more widespread and available than fixed-sensor, ride-sharing and other similar data.…”