What does « Like » represent ?

Antho

Antho

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This might be a weird question but maybe a good one 😉.

On YouTube I always see comments such as : « like if you agree with me » « like if you think that.. ». On every social media we can react with some emoticons reactions. Even here on the board we have multiples choices now to express our opinions with the smiley reactions. I remember a time where we only had the « like button ».

So my question is : what do « likes » mean for people ? I guess it gives some recognition or self-confidence to notice that some people have the same opinion. Probably it brings some comfort. But on the contrary if there is a « dislike button » or if you have a debate with someone who gets lot of likes and you haven’t, woudn’t that produce the reverse effect ? Lack of confidence and maybe end the debate just because the person doesn’t assume his opinions ? It’s just questions 🤔
 
Like represent money. The more likes the higher a video is positioned in others feeds. The higher positioned the potential for more views. The potential for more views is the potential for more money. Likes, comments and subscriptions are all monetary tools they use.
 
I think likes and dislike on videos are cool but on social media and discussion platforms I don't think dislikes should be allowed. I always feel bad downvoting anything on Reddit.
 
Athene said:
I always feel bad downvoting anything on Reddit.
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I think part of that is that you are made to feel bad by people who get mad when they are downvoted for what they feel is 'no reason at all', when in reality - imo, at least - downvoting is literally just someone disliking or disagreeing with the posted comment.

For me, likes are just that; I like/agree with something, I vote up, I dislike/disagree with something, I vote down. If I'm unsure, I leave it alone.
 
I don't post much on twitter, but I like and re-tweet everything. I like to like stuff, it feels good and it doesn't cost me anything. On here I like the stuff I agree with, or the stuff that makes me laugh, or just a good question someone has posed.

I like stuff on tumblr too, but I'm never sure if I'm liking the original post or the the replies....?
 
Spanky said:
Like represent money. The more likes the higher a video is positioned in others feeds. The higher positioned the potential for more views. The potential for more views is the potential for more money. Likes, comments and subscriptions are all monetary tools they use.
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I agree. « Likes » have a lot of function, and one of them is financial. As you said, for creators ( fanarts, videos, pictures...) having likes and views represent money for them. I get that. But what about Thoses who ask for « Likes » in the comment section ? They have nothing to win but having likes seem important to them. Why ?

On a human philosophical aspect only, isn’t it dangerous to live in a society where it’s important for people to get « likes » ? Isn’t that a bit superficial ?
 
Antho said:
But what about Thoses who ask for « Likes » in the comment section ? They have nothing to win but having likes seem important to them. Why ?
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Oh. You mean commenters. Yeah, that's a big difference. As to why? Because they have a low self-opinion of themselves and they seek validation.
 
Puppet said:
I think part of that is that you are made to feel bad by people who get mad when they are downvoted for what they feel is 'no reason at all', when in reality - imo, at least - downvoting is literally just someone disliking or disagreeing with the posted comment.

For me, likes are just that; I like/agree with something, I vote up, I dislike/disagree with something, I vote down. If I'm unsure, I leave it alone.
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It is just people disagreeing with you but it can feel kind of heavy if you have like 40 downvotes and think about how that's so many people who disagreed. I think it feels like dogpiling sometimes. Also if affects the karma of your profile. I know I've felt unfairly downvoted but I've never commented back saying that 😂 so now even if I hate a comment I won't downvote I'll just let it go.
 
« Like » and « Dislikes » are so important in our society. On a moral level, i think it can be such destructor and dépendant. I mean if you always seek for approbation from others on social media then it means you will never have confidence in you. And if you are talented in something and share your works on Internet, having more dislikes can stop you. Of course artist need to accept critics but sometimes on social media the « critics » are really agressive on a personal level because of course we know it that some people feel really powerful behind a computer.
Plus isn’t that a sort of closure of any discussion ? I mean if you like, 90% of the time you are not going to comment..
 
I like stuff that I agree with or make me laugh, I don't downvote or dislike anything, not my style.
 
The Like/Dislike thing is a can of unintended consequences, and I think more often than not it's more about cliques & tribal identities (and sometimes bullying) than about any actual comments (that is, it's not what you say, but who you are, or at least what you label yourself assuming you're not too heretical/free thinking). I believe I've read about how likes (and even clicks) can become addictive, as in it affects the brain similar to a drug, which of course is going to alter their behavior to get as much as they can.

But this:

Antho said:
On YouTube I always see comments such as : « like if you agree with me » « like if you think that.. »
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What I recall is "like if you agree, comment if you disagree." This actually makes sense because people who disagree are more motivated to respond which can make a popular (at least common) opinion seem a lot less popular than it is, so by doing this a more accurate view of what people are thinking can be shown. (Though then again, as "likes" become addictive, this could be just another excuse to gain that buzz, at least in some cases.)
 
There are many »reactions ». The like one, the laugh emoticons one, the angry one, the sad one...

When someone react to your post : do that make you feel that you are kind of important ? That’s what you said isn’t bullshit. If you are engage in a conversation with someone who gets likes and you don’t, will you stop arguing just because he has support and you don’t ?

Sorry guys.. maybe my questions are really stupid but I try to understand why to have likes is so important in that society.
 
If I'm debating with someone in the moment, the likes etc. don't bother me, but if I go back to it the following day and the other person has loads of likes and I don't, yeah that does affect me and I wonder where I've gone wrong in my argument.
 
Priceless said:
if I go back to it the following day and the other person has loads of likes and I don't, yeah that does affect me and I wonder where I've gone wrong in my argument.
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I like your honesty. It’s not easy to admit that. I think I’m like you on that subject. I can understand what you mean. I think it’s really terrible because we doubt on ourself and our opinions just because society values social media and every tools ( likes...) that go with this. But the effect on a personal level is not good, especially on the self-esteem and the communication.
 
There have been studies about the effects of "like culture" on mental health and well-being and I think it's a valid theory that artificial likes only artificially bolster your well-being, but because they're not "real" likes, it's almost like a drug, in that you become addicted to the dopamine-like effect and then, if a negative response occurs, you get a very real low from it.

I post a lot on Twitter, and even I've been sucked into the like/want for likes. It validates your thoughts. It does make you feel a sense of self-importance and self-validation. But it's not real. We get so much positivity from online communications, we forget what it's like to actually get real life validation! The thing is, in real life no-one's going to "like" what you say. They're more likely to discuss, rather than just agree, and that's the difference.
 
Antho
Antho
Really interesting
nightshade said:
I usually just think, what did I post? Or when did I post in that thread?
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Haha 😂. I think this is the case for a lot of us. Few weeks ago, a person like every message of Mine in the thread « new 30 days of Bangel » last year. It made me smile. And then, don’t ask me why I just reread my comments 😂😂. What a douchebag I am. This was actually one of the reasons I created this thread. I don’t understand this sentiment of satisfaction « likes » seem to Provoke.

Buffy Summers said:
I barely notice them lol!
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It’s surely because you get use to it. You know what people think of you. You have been on this forum since 2001, you got so much likes, discuss so many things, several times, that maybe you get tired of it and don’t even care. But back 2001, do you remember the feelings of getting likes, talking about the series you love.. the pleasure and sensation sure weren’t the same
 
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