Wikipedia has been studied extensively. Between 2001 and 2010, researchers published at least 1,746 peer-reviewed articles about the online encyclopedia.[1] Such studies are greatly facilitated by the fact that Wikipedia's database can be downloaded without help from the site owner.[2]
Research topics have included the reliability of the encyclopedia and various forms of systemic bias; social aspects of the Wikipedia community (including administration, policy, and demographics); the encyclopedia as a dataset for machine learning; and whether Wikipedia trends might predict or influence human behaviour.
Notable findings include factual accuracy similar to other encyclopedias, the presence of cultural and gender bias as well as gaps in coverage of the Global South; that a tiny minority of editors produce the majority of content; various models for understanding online conflict; and limited correlation between Wikipedia trends and various phenomena such as stock market movements or electoral results.