Schoberth, Thomas, Armin Heinzl, and Jenny Preece. "Exploring communication activities in online communities: A longitudinal analysis in the financial services industry." Journal of Organizational Computing and Electronic Commerce 16.3-4 (2006): 247-265.

This study examines the development and changes in communication activity within online communities (OCs), focusing on a German financial service provider's OC. Through a longitudinal analysis of over 33,000 participants and 1.03 million messages over three years, the research investigates the enabling and inhibiting factors affecting participants' communication activity. Key findings indicate that external factors significantly impact the OC's size, and while the OC's size does not directly affect communication activity, increased information load leads to changes in communication strategies. Additionally, participant activity became more heterogeneous over time, with a small minority contributing the majority of postings.