Negative Ratings: What they are, what they are doing, and why I dislike them.

Hello everyone, Random Citizen here. Now before I start this, I would like to say that this is not a rant. This is a series of my opinions and intelligent well thought out points backed with solid reasoning. I hate the term rant. Ok, with that aside, let me begin.


Negative ratings, something that has become a part of our community. Most people embrace them, not really thinking too much on the subject. I however, am one of the few that reject the use of negative ratings altogether. My dislike of them grows as I continually see the negative effects they have on our community. They have subtly worsened our forum community in a way that most might not notice. Now, you may wonder why I dislike negative ratings. Well, I have noticed that all too often, they are viciously abused. Nowadays, I cannot seem to go one day without witnessing something of this sort. Furthermore, they are completely unnecessary; they are utterly pointless. They possess nothing that can be considered beneficial to our community. Lastly, nothing good can ever result from rating something negative. I will explain these subjects more in depth later. I will begin by speaking on the all too obvious abuse of these kind of ratings.


As I stated previously, my dislike of negative ratings has been growing. I tolerated their existence for a while, but this is what really set me over the edge. I began to see them being horribly abused. I witnessed things that are good and profitable being debased by the abuse of negative ratings. Good things that did nothing but uplift the community were being stained by having negative ratings plastered on them. These occurrences are especially prevalent in the clan or team sections. Examples: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 At first I was shocked. I had no idea why anyone would dislike these posts or rate them pointless. People were literally disliking and discouraging posts congratulating people and or wishing people good luck. So, in order to find out more, I politely asked a few people who rated these posts what their reasoning was in a pm. Here are a few of the responses I got.

"The posts on the thread are in my opinion spam. They contain next to no detail, and are posted not to contribute to the convo, but to simply farm messages. I am very harsh when it comes to things like this, as I am a no nonsense person." -Anonymous 1

"It fits under pointless to me if someone JUST says those two things [Good luck and Happy hunting], all they want is a post count and a easy rating." -Anonymous 2

I believe this is an accurate representation of many members when it comes to rating these such posts negatively. Now, I have a few issues with this kind of reasoning. Firstly, just because something contains "next to no detail" does not make it spam. Spam (or spamming) is against the forum rules and is reportable. Not once in the forum rules does it define spam as "lacking in detail." These kinds of posts do in fact contribute to the conversation, regardless of whether or not they are detailed. For example, let's imagine someone posts a thread announcing that they have reached an important milestone. What is the point of that thread? Is the point not to congratulate the person? What else is there to be said other than congratulations? Taking this into consideration, should we rate that what is good negatively because it lacks detail? Certainly not! Why would we discourage such friendliness? Secondly, in order to have a similar mindset to the ones mentioned previously, one must assume that the person who has posted something nice, did not do so for the "right reasons." How can anyone know for a fact a person's intentions over the internet? Nobody can! It's impossible. It is assuming far too much to think that someone who is posting something nice is doing so out of a want to increase their post count, or for any reason other than being nice. Since no one can prove that someone posted something like this for any reason other than to be nice, the least we can do is give them the benefit of the doubt and let it be. If we do not, then what if we are wrong? What if that person was only trying to be nice? What if, by rating the person's post negatively, we inadvertently discourage the poster from posting more uplifting posts? We must not do that. If anything, we should go as far as to give them a positive rating for their trouble. Why? Allow me to put it this way. Is it not better to take the time to post something nice than to do nothing at all? Is it not more profitable to encourage others than to remain indifferent to them altogether? The answer is clear. Another example of the abuse of negative ratings is how they influence and effect our less popular members. I have observed that the more a person is liked, the more open people are to liking their content. Unfortunately, a similar trend occurs for negative ratings. The less a person is liked, the more open people are to spamming them with negative ratings for no reason whatsoever. ErebosGiant is the perfect example of this. Here are a few examples of hate Erebos received: 1 2 3 Please bear in mind that these ratings were given not because of the content of the posts, but because of the user that posted them. There was nothing wrong with these posts. Erebos just wasn't very popular with our community as a whole. Now, what resulted of these ratings given? It turned into an unforgiving cycle of being bitten, and biting back. I will put it this way. Erebos was disliked, therefore he was given needless negative ratings. Erebos in turn took revenge and spammed the ratings back. This caused him to become even more unpopular. Because of this, people spammed him with more negative ratings, thus this vicious cycle went on and on. It was a sad thing to behold. As you can see, the abuse of negative ratings has lead to nothing but a spread of negativity that continues to worsen our community daily.


Alright, it's time to move on to a different subject. Another reason I dislike negative ratings is because I see no good reason for them. They are the epitome of worthlessness. What are they good for? Now, the obvious response to this question I believe would be something along the lines of: "Well, they are a good way of expressing yourself." My response is "Who are you expressing yourself to?" Virtually nobody ever sees who likes or dislikes something on a thread except for the person whose post was liked or disliked. To everyone else but the recipient, they are just pictures next to words. Now, to me, this is a huge issue with our current rating system as a whole. Not only does it make negative ratings seem personal, but it allows people get away with rating spam. So, if rating something is not a valid way of expressing oneself, then what is the point of rating posts in the first place? Well, to me, the purpose of positive ratings it is to reward the poster, or to show appreciation for what they posted. To encourage them to keep up their good work. Now, this is fine on a personal level. In fact, it makes liking something even better because it seems personal. However, the main issue lies with negative ratings. What is the purpose of rating something negatively? Since it cannot be effectively used to express oneself, it makes negative ratings seem personal. Even though negative ratings are not always given with the intent of being taken personally, because the poster is the only one who can really see the dislike, it gives negative ratings a distinct appearance of hate or personal dislike. Thus, considering these things, we find that negative ratings in no way improve the forums. They only bring negativity and hate.


Rating posts negatively a dangerous business. What good can ever come from it? As I stated previously, they can easily be taken as personal dislike or hate. This not only harms the recipient of the negative rating, but it also harms the giver of the rating. It can harm the recipient by making him or her look bad. After all, ratings are displayed publically for everyone to see. Not only can it harm the recipient, but it can also harm the giver! It can make him or her look like a hater thus destroying the giver's reputation. Not only that, but it can also provoke the recipient to the point of harboring ill-will towards the giver. All of these things create a dismal environment for our community. None of these things improve the forums in any way. Why even have negative ratings in the first place? Does anyone remember the days of the older forums? Does anyone remember the days before negative ratings were implemented? I do. Those were the days. It was all fun and games back then. People were nicer, freer, and friendlier. For the most part, everyone got along. Because of the lack of negative ratings, the disputes that did exist were not able to turn into subtle dislike wars, thus they were more easily identifiable and preventable. Back then, it was the staff's job to deal out punishments. The general populace did not have the capability to punish others through negative ratings. Doesn't it sound like a dream? It was a dream. Negative ratings are holding us back from our full potential. We can't really be at our best with them holding us back. Negative ratings are exactly what they sound like they are: negative! They are inherently bad. It's their nature. Nothing good can ever come from them. Nothing good can come from something that is inherently bad. Why should we continue to use them? Why are they still here?


So there you have it. That is why I hate negative ratings. For too long have they been negatively effecting our community. For too long have they been abused. They provide us with nothing but a weapon of malice. What good has come from them? What good can ever come from it? The only thing negative ratings have done is worsen our community. Now, if I had it my way, I would do away with negative ratings altogether. However, I am not sure if there are enough people that think of them the same way that I do to bring such a glorious change to fruition.


But thankfully, there is hope! We can still do something about our predicament! It is as simple as choosing not to use negative ratings anymore. If any of you want to make a difference in our community, this is one of the best ways to do so! By disregarding the use of negative ratings, and only using positive ones, you are effectively eliminating any negativity that might have been caused by the use of a negative rating. Can you imagine? What would it look like if you only gave out positivity? You know the old sayings: "you reap what you sow", "what goes around comes around" etc. Instead of creating a negative cycle, why not create a positive one? Don't feed the negativity in the community, do away with it! Build people up, don't tear them down! Make a choice to make a difference! Do what is best for you and everyone else! Say no to negative ratings! Now, I know that this won't speak to everyone, but if it speaks to you, then consider giving this a shot. I guarantee you it is better this way. Let's all make the forums a better place everyone. If you read this all, you really deserve a cookie. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Wishing and Hoping for the good of all McBrawl

Yours Truly

Random Citizen

 

People aren't expressing themselves. Nobody else sees that you disliked something other than the recipient of the dislike, therefore, it isn't really a legitimate way of expressing yourself. I addressed this. I also addressed why we shouldn't just get rid of the rating system altogether.

 

I'm fine with positive ratings being displayed in public. It's negative ratings that are the problem. It would do our community a lot of good if they were removed.

 

How could this problem be completely resolved without having the ratings removed altogether?
There are other ways to see if someone can be trusted. That is what staff apps are for.
Negative ratings are not always a direct result of bad behavior.
True, it isn't always this way. It was however, this way with Erebos.
I agree completely, I just don't see any reason why the negative ratings have to stay. The negative ratings only worsen the communities bad behavior. They are not used for good.

 

Yeah, they aren't being used very responsibly and they aren't really good for anything.

Adding to signature. That is one of the most intelligent things I have heard on the forums. You said exactly what needed to be said.

 

It happens all too often my friend. I see it all the time.