Hi Carol,

From what I've seen of both men & women I've been in contact with recently, some really like Wikipedia but when it comes down to editing don't know where to start in that they have not got an idea in mind already to start their editing from. They might also be perfectionists who feel they can't contribute till they have some perfect idea.

For myself personally I tend to have these little 'inspirational' moments where I'll be out or I'll be talking to someone and it will occur to me to see if the Wikipedia entry is up to date or complete so for me it stems from from these moments. Now I'm runnng Women4Wikipedia I have been struggling to juggle running the campaign and editing Wikipedia! I have managed to add my first biography of a living person and some other bits and pieces.

I think for people who are new to Wikipedia and decide to edit due to an issue they feel strongly about, their fervour may be a double-edged sword. These people my be at most risk of their experience not living up to their hopes in that their strong opinion might imply that there are other people with equally strong opinions on the same topic on Wikipedia and facing this while also learning the syntax and everything else can result in them feeling overwhelmed.

The most common comment to me though is that women have just not thought to do it before. These women don't cite any concerns about Wikipedia- one has to be informed about Wikipedia to have heard of the reputation for conflict that has been doing the media rounds. With a bit of help and support through learning the ropes, many women I talk to on Twitter don't have a problem with the idea of editing Wikipedia and of course some have alredy done so.

Just thought I'd add my feedback to the topic.

Rosie
http://women4wikipedia.net

>
> Message: 3
> Date: Mon, 07 Mar 2011 20:15:28 -0500
> From: carolmooredc@verizon.net
> Subject: [Gendergap] What motivates women to edit??
> To: Increasing female participation in Wikimedia projects
> <gendergap@lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID: <4D758330.1000904@verizon.net>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252; format=flowed
>
> What Motivates Women - especially to write and edit? I think finding
> motivations many women share and tapping into those to encourage women
> to start and keep editing is key to this project
>
> I'm an atypical task oriented political organizing/writing maniac, so
> I'm not the best judge :-) I know many women are busy with home duties
> and myself have found the last 10 years that elder dog/new young dog
> care and barter-for-rent-housekeeping certainly have taken up a lot of
> my time.
>
> So I know it must be more for women with husbands, kids, elderly
> parents, etc. If I was working more than very part time (plus collecting
> social security), I wouldn't have the time.
>
> But for those who can squeeze in a few hours a week, what might be their
> biggest kick/motivator for writing about topics of interest? If the
> motivation is strong enough, even dealing with the male culture and/or
> dominance problem is easier psychologically for those who inadvertently
> or purposively venture into articles where lots of garrulous males hangout.
>
> Since many women (overly?) motivated by ?selfless motives,? ?Women: make
> the world a better and smarter place - edit Wikipedia!? Just a thought,
> based on part of my own motivation.
>
> Anyway, feel free to brainstorm on this topic more with your own
> personal female motivation! :-)
>
> Carol in DC