The sustainability of open source software (OSS) projects hinges on contributor retention. Interpersonal challenges can inhibit a feeling of welcomeness among contributors, particularly from underrepresented groups, which impacts their decision to continue with the project. How much this impact is, varies among individuals, underlining the importance of a thorough understanding of their effects. Here, we investigate the effects of interpersonal challenges on the sense of welcomeness among diverse populations within OSS, through the diversity lenses of gender, race, and (dis)ability. We analyzed the large-scale Linux Foundation Diversity and Inclusion survey (n = 706) to model a theoretical framework linking interpersonal challenges with the sense of welcomeness through Structural Equation Models Partial Least Squares (PLS-SEM). We then examine the model to identify the impact of these challenges on different demographics through Multi-Group Analysis (MGA). Finally, we conducted a regression analysis to investigate how differently people from different demographics experience different types of interpersonal challenges. Our findings confirm the negative association between interpersonal challenges and the feeling of welcomeness in OSS, with this relationship being more pronounced among gender minorities and people with disabilities. We found that different challenges have unique impacts on how people feel welcomed, with variations across gender, race, and disability groups. We also provide evidence that people from gender minorities and with disabilities are more likely to experience interpersonal challenges than their counterparts, especially when we analyze stalking, sexual harassment, and doxxing. Our insights benefit OSS communities, informing potential strategies to improve the landscape of interpersonal relationships, ultimately fostering more inclusive and welcoming communities.

翻译：开源软件（OSS）项目的可持续性取决于贡献者的留存率。人际挑战会抑制贡献者（尤其是来自代表性不足群体的贡献者）的归属感，从而影响他们继续参与项目的决定。这种影响的程度因人而异，这凸显了深入理解其效应的重要性。本文通过性别、种族和（残）障等多样性视角，研究了人际挑战对开源软件中不同群体归属感的影响。我们分析了大规模Linux基金会多元化与包容性调查（n = 706），通过偏最小二乘结构方程模型（PLS-SEM）构建了将人际挑战与归属感联系起来的概念框架。随后，我们通过多群组分析（MGA）检验该模型，以识别这些挑战对不同人口群体的影响。最后，我们进行了回归分析，以探究不同人口群体如何差异化地经历不同类型的人际挑战。我们的研究结果证实了人际挑战与开源软件中归属感之间的负相关关系，且这种关系在性别少数群体和残障人士中更为显著。我们发现，不同挑战对人们归属感的影响具有独特性，并在性别、种族和残障群体间存在差异。我们还提供证据表明，性别少数群体和残障人士比其对应群体更可能经历人际挑战，尤其是在分析跟踪骚扰、性骚扰和人肉搜索时。我们的见解有益于开源社区，为改善人际关系生态、最终培育更具包容性和归属感的社区提供了潜在的策略参考。