There’s been a couple times recently when I’ve wanted to express, “I agree”, but not wanted to clog the thread by posting a comment with just that text. The most recent example:
Right now the best way to do this is to appreciate the comment. However, that verb and the feeling do not quite match.
In the past I’ve been hesitant about adding an “I agree” reaction because it might promote groupthink. However, I’m reconsidering that position, because:
- It’s a common feeling to want to express. Thus, it’s likely that some reaction will become a socially-agreed-upon “agree” button, even if that’s not the official meaning. This dilutes the meaning of that reaction, which I don’t like — “Does that reaction mean the official thing or agreement?”
- Currently, it’s most likely that this will be appreciate. This action influences trust levels, post sorting in some places, etc. There’s actually a way to sort topics by number of appreciations, although we’ve hidden it via the site settings or css I think. All things equal, I’d rather tie those less to agreement and more to appreciation.
I’d like to propose:[1] I’m thinking of proposing:
- Adding an additional retort reaction, I_agree (or agreed?).
- I’d be especially open to alternative names/icons that aren’t so absolute
— like how skeptical isn’t a hard-line “I disagree”.
- I’d be especially open to alternative names/icons that aren’t so absolute
- Changing the other icon to appreciate (other suggestions also welcome here).
edit: This does leave much more overlap between appreciate and thank_you
Not sure what, if anything, to do about that.
Not-directly-related thought: how does thank_you change the meaning?
edit2: Related prior discussions:
- Should we include a "Disagree" reaction?
- "respect" and "agree" vs "like" (and other ideal reaction options)
On reflection, this is definitely still something that I would like. I’m not sure if it would be good, though. It might be a good thing if the “agree” button — “appreciate” — creates a little hesitation before using it / prompts me to think about whether I also appreciate it. I’m going to sit and think about this some more. ↩︎