An Exploratory Study of Conflict over Paying Debian Developers

This article reports on an exploratory study of the causes and effects of conflict within the open source software project, Debian. Conflict arose when the project leader decided to introduce payment for select volunteers within an all-volunteer project to speed up the release of Debian. The study utilized the theoretical framework of Boltanski and Thévenot for understanding disputes. The results of the survey of Debian developers show that the conditions for conflict were complex and were driven by perception of misuse of authority, ideology, feeling of inequity, and satisfaction with pay for their regular job. The effects of the conflict were shown to be pervasive as it affected volunteer's citizenship behaviors and withdrawal from the project. Additionally, the conflict led some developers to reaffirm their beliefs about the value of paying volunteers. The conclusions of the study offer insight into the issues of incentivizing volunteer OSS developers.