when giving ratings on scales of 1 to 5 or 1 to 10 about movies, music, photos, companies, et cetera, different users may use different rating strategies.
for example, some users report tending towards a gaussian distribution of ratings, whereas i use a triangular series distribution. what are some common rating strategies that have been observed?
answer
- uniform distribution: users who employ this strategy distribute their ratings evenly across all possible values. each rating from 1 to 5 (or 1 to 10) is equally likely. this approach often aims for impartiality.
- gaussian distribution: also known as the bell curve, this distribution centers most ratings around the middle values, with fewer ratings at the extremes. for a 1 to 5 scale, ratings tend to cluster around 3, with fewer 1s and 5s. this strategy reflects a tendency to moderate assessments, avoiding extreme judgments.
- triangular distribution: users with a triangular distribution favor either the lower or higher end of the scale while decreasing linearly toward the other end. for instance, if they tend toward higher ratings, 5s are most common, followed by 4s, and so on. this indicates a bias towards positivity or negativity.
- leniency bias: this strategy involves consistently giving higher ratings, often due to a reluctance to give negative feedback. users employing this bias may frequently rate items as 4 or 5 on a 1 to 5 scale, rarely using the lower end of the scale.
- stringency bias: opposite to leniency bias, stringent raters are more critical and less likely to give high ratings. they frequently rate items as 1 or 2, using higher ratings sparingly. this approach often reflects a high standard or critical perspective.
- bimodal distribution: ratings cluster around two distinct values, often at the extremes (e.g., many 1s and 5s, few 2s, 3s, and 4s). this strategy may indicate a polarized view, where users either love or hate items with little middle ground.
- positive skew: ratings are skewed towards higher values, with more 4s and 5s than 1s and 2s. this can indicate optimism or satisfaction with most items being rated.
- negative skew: ratings are skewed towards lower values, with more 1s and 2s than 4s and 5s. this suggests a more pessimistic or dissatisfied perspective.
- j-shaped distribution: similar to the positive skew but more extreme, users predominantly give high ratings (e.g., mostly 5s), with a rapid drop-off towards lower ratings. this may be seen in enthusiastic or loyal user bases.
- random distribution: ratings appear random, with no discernible pattern. this can result from a lack of a clear rating strategy or inconsistent evaluation criteria.