Episode 285: Miranda Heath on Altruism & Burnout in Open Source

Guest Miranda Heath Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer is joined by PhD student Miranda Heath to discuss her research on altruism and maintainer burnout in open source, and specifically her report on burn out in open source maintainers. Miranda shares insights from her study on what motivates people to act altruistically and how these behaviors manifest in open source communities. She delves into the common issues maintainers face, such as changing motivations and the systemic challenges that contribute to burnout. Drawing on examples from her research, including kidney donors and open source maintainers, Miranda explores how community support, mentorship, and better funding can help mitigate burnout. The conversation also touches on the unique challenges neurodiverse maintainers face and the importance of creating supportive environments for them. Press download now to hear more! [00:00:44] Richard introduces Miranda Heath, whom he met at FOSDEM, and she’s built a major report on maintainer burnout. [00:02:04] Miranda studies what motivates people to benefit others, how “altruism” is often framed too narrowly, and she points out neglected forms. [00:03:40] Richard asks about a name for the type of altruism, and they land on “collective altruism” as a useful label for shared/commons based giving. [00:04:25] Miranda explains her work on anonymous kidney donors and the key insight from the kidney donors is that altruism can be mundane. [00:06:45] Looking at the motivations of open source developers, Miranda sees overlap between altruistic impulses and open source and contrasts this with academia’s paywall-driven publication system. [00:08:36] They discuss how motivation changes which leads to burnout risk, and Richard brings up Miranda’s maintainer burnout report and what it was based on. [00:10:13] Miranda describes how this report started and what she wanted to change. [00:13:21] What are some systematic solutions for burnout? Miranda argues “money vs people” is a false dichotomy: respecting maintainers includes making it possible to live. Burnout is worsened by “double shift” dynamics and “Labor of love is still labor.” [00:16:18] Richard notes many maintainers are paid through employers, Miranda talks about paid maintainer roles still carry burnout risk, and some research done by Robert Karasek in the late 70’s. [00:20:14] Miranda draws from social psychology: communities run on group norms (often unspoken), and emphasizes we need to make beneficiaries feel part of the in-group, so they adopt norms. [00:22:36] Richard highlights the Open Source Pledge and policy approaches like the Cyber Resilience Act, and Miranda notes policy could reduce autonomy and increase burnout if rigid. [00:26:22] What happens after burnout? Miranda believes we should prevent unwanted exits, normalize “sunsetting” conversations, and have a plan to wind down a project. [00:31:17] There’s a discussion on how burnout shouldn’t equal personal failure, and an example is brought up with the Tailwind CSS tensions. [00:35:19] Miranda stresses the importance of mentorship for community roles to be filled, Richard cites Abby Cabunoc’s “3 C’s” for mentor-worthy contributors, and Miranda mentions the concept of “Mentorship Triangle.” [00:38:03] Find out where you can follow Miranda and her work online. [00:38:27] We wrap with Miranda sharing there’s an important gap with neurodivergence and autistic burnout and how more research needs to be done. Quotes [00:15:13] “Maintenance work is work, but a labor of love is labor.” Spotlight [00:40:47] Richard's spotlight is the klezmer band, OCH VEY. [00:41:33] Miranda’s spotlight is the puzzle game, TR-49. Links SustainOSS [email protected] [email protected] SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Miranda Heath Website Sentry Open Source Pledge Job Demands, Job Decision Latitude, and Mental Strain: Implications for Job Redesign by Robert Karasek, Jr. (Sage Publications) Cyber Resilience Act Abby Cabunoc Mayes-The Synthetic Senior: Rethinking Free Software Mentorship in the AI Era (FOSDEM 2026 talk video) OCH VEY Instagram TR-49 Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Miranda Heath.