participants vs non-participants in voting

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

07/14/2008 02:23:29 PM · #1

Avg (participants): 5.7805
Avg (non-participants): 6.4592

I checked a few challenges, and participants voting less always than non-participants!!! What is that mean? Are participants looking into photos rather more carefully? or are they just bunch of upset voters because they are not doing well?

...or just something mathematical, and normal to have that kind of difference...

any ideas?

hopper

Canon EOS-80D

Canon EF 35mm f/2 IS USM

07/14/2008 02:28:20 PM · #2

... or do the non-participant votes represent people inflating what they would normally vote in order to boost their average vote given so people won't call them out in the forums?

Yo_Spiff

Olympus 12-100mm f/4.0 M.Zuiko ED IS PRO

07/14/2008 02:30:06 PM · #3

I think participants are more interested in the topic and likely (on average) take more time to look over the entry in detail. The non participants are more likely to speed-vote.

...also, people just like to pick on Leo.

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

07/14/2008 02:44:02 PM · #4

We should ban "participants" voting totaly, and keep "non-participants" voting only :P

Melethia

Canon EOS-80D

07/14/2008 02:48:59 PM · #5

Originally posted by FocusPoint:

We should ban "participants" voting totaly, and keep "non-participants" voting only :P

Dead horse warning! Dead horse warning! :-)

Canon 12x IS USM (S3 IS built-in Lens) -- 36-432mm (35mm EQ)

07/14/2008 02:52:35 PM · #6

Originally posted by Melethia:

Originally posted by FocusPoint:
We should ban "participants" voting totaly, and keep "non-participants" voting only :P

Dead horse warning! Dead horse warning! :-)

really? when? by whom? ... why?

GeneralE

Canon PowerShot S3 IS

07/14/2008 02:55:10 PM · #7

Originally posted by FocusPoint:

Originally posted by Melethia:

Originally posted by FocusPoint:
We should ban "participants" voting totaly, and keep "non-participants" voting only :P

Dead horse warning! Dead horse warning! :-)

really? when? by whom? ... why?

The issue has been discussed many times. The voting situation will not be changing any time soon.

Frankie_Lv

Canon EOS-30D

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS

07/14/2008 02:58:51 PM · #8

Originally posted by GeneralE:

Originally posted by FocusPoint:

Originally posted by Melethia:

Originally posted by FocusPoint:
We should ban "participants" voting totaly, and keep "non-participants" voting only :P

Dead horse warning! Dead horse warning! :-)

really? when? by whom? ... why?

The issue has been discussed many times. The voting situation will not be changing any time soon.

This is a good thing I like the voting just the way it is.

ambaker

Google Glass Google Glass

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM

07/14/2008 02:59:06 PM · #9

While not a scientific survey or statistically significant sample (two data points).

In the point of color challenge, the winner's vote from participants was 7.3xxx vs 7.4xxx from non-participants. The last place photo was the opposite. With 3.5xxx from participants vs 3.1xxx from non participants.

If this trend were to be shown to hold through other high and low ranking images, and across a number of challenges, it might indicate three possible reasons.

1. Participants really like poor photos.

2. They have sympathy for those whose photos are not going to do well, os they give them a mercy vote.

3. They are trying to enhance the chance of their image doing well, and are voting lower on the good images to try to improve their chances. While at the same time voting higher on images not likely to do well, to raise their overall voting score. (So as to look above reproach.)

07/14/2008 03:02:12 PM · #10

Originally posted by FocusPoint:

We should ban "participants" voting totaly, and keep "non-participants" voting only :P

You know I'm not to opposed to this idea. I try not to vote on challenges I'm in. In all honesty I don't feel I could vote in an unbiased manner. Thats just my way of doing things. However, I do like having enough voters to stabilize my images score. I would have a heart failure watching my score jump around even at the end of the week. It's crazy for the first 50 votes. I couldn't handle those spread out lol.

07/14/2008 03:05:38 PM · #11

Originally posted by ambaker:

2. They have sympathy for those whose photos are not going to do well, os they give them a mercy vote.

I do this lol.... sorry but I want to encourage people to keep shooting and try harder. I figure they aren't going to ribbon so what's the harm.

hopper

Canon EOS-80D

Canon EF 35mm f/2 IS USM

07/14/2008 03:06:24 PM · #12

(hopper being a broken record alert)

I doesn't matter one bit if a person uses 1-5, or 5-10, or 3-8 while voting. As long as the voter votes consistently, the results will still be accurate. Judge your progress by your percentage placing within the challenge ... not by weather or not you should have gotten three 2's or only one 10.

Actually using the entire scale, 1 thru 10, while voting will actually make the results more accurate ... but of course everyone is afraid to give a 1 because that immediately means you're a troll. If you submit quality entries, they'll make their way to the top of the list - regardless of the score.

07/14/2008 03:09:19 PM · #13

Originally posted by Patrick_R:

Originally posted by ambaker:

2. They have sympathy for those whose photos are not going to do well, os they give them a mercy vote.

I do this lol.... sorry but I want to encourage people to keep shooting and try harder. I figure they aren't going to ribbon so what's the harm.

I wonder if I would see one of those "mercy voted" photos winning ribbon because everyone showed mercy :P

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 USM

07/14/2008 03:14:20 PM · #14

Originally posted by hopper:

(hopper being a broken record alert)
Actually using the entire scale, 1 thru 10, while voting will actually make the results more accurate ...

Agreed I use the whole scale. It actually makes voting easier in the end because I can space out the images more correctly (in my opinion anyways) First pass is keyboard voting and then I can fine tune on my second pass.

RayEthier

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

07/14/2008 03:14:35 PM · #15

Originally posted by Patrick_R:

Originally posted by FocusPoint:
We should ban "participants" voting totaly, and keep "non-participants" voting only :P

You know I'm not to opposed to this idea. I try not to vote on challenges I'm in. In all honesty I don't feel I could vote in an unbiased manner.

Sure you can... all you need do is turn off your scores. If you have no idea what others are voting on your image, you have no reson to adjust your scores accordingly.

Ray

Jammur

Nikon D300

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II

07/14/2008 03:28:20 PM · #16

If we all chipped in another $25 a year, we could hire professional voters and all the bias voting crap would be eliminated.

PS: Did I mention I needed a job?

PPS: Did I mention I accept tips?