Surviving an "Eternal September": How an Online Community Managed a Surge of Newcomers

This interview study examines how the r/NoSleep community on Reddit navigated a massive, sustained influx of newcomers, avoiding the disruptions typical of such events (commonly referred to as an "Eternal September"). Conducted as part of my work with the University of Washington and the Community Data Science Collective, the study highlights strategies for maintaining community stability and adherence to norms during periods of rapid growth. 

• Investigate how r/NoSleep avoided the typical pitfalls of large-scale community growth.

• Identify socio-technical systems and strategies that enable communities to manage new user integration effectively.

• Provide actionable insights for community leaders and designers to improve governance and scalability.

I served as the Lead Researcher on this project, collaborating with a multidisciplinary team from the University of Washington and Microsoft Research. My contributions included:

• Research Design: Developed the methodology for a grounded theory-based analysis.

• Participant Recruitment: Identified and interviewed 12 community members and moderators.

• Data Analysis: Coded transcripts and synthesized findings into actionable themes.

• Knowledge Dissemination: Published and presented findings at the 2016 CHI conference.

• Qualitative Research: Designed and executed semi-structured interviews with NoSleep community members.

• Data Analysis: Iteratively coded interview data to identify emergent themes using grounded theory.

• Theoretical Contributions: Proposed three socio-technical systems that supported NoSleep’s stability during growth:

  • Consistent enforcement by moderators

  • Peer moderation by engaged community members

  • Software systems for automating norm enforcement

• Collaboration: Partnered with co-authors to interpret findings and frame implications for design and governance.

• Identified socio-technical strategies that balanced community growth with norm preservation.

• Highlighted the role of active and consistent leadership, shared community norms, and advanced technological tools in managing user influx.

• Provided design recommendations for scalable moderation systems that empower both leaders and members.