Feedback as gratitude or gift
Fandom seems to be split into two camps: those who think that offering thanks for feedback is required, and those that don't. (Okay, there's a small third batch that really haven't thought about it one way or the other, but give it time.) The ones who think it's not required often use the example of 'thank you' cards offered for gifts to iterate the ways in which thanking someone for gratitude is not usual. I think that this misses the point somewhat: offering thanks for feedback is not about whether or not it is required by courtesy, but about whether it fulfils certain social functions in the (cyber)society. As with all societies, it differs depending on where you look.
Feedback is both gratitude (the 'thanks' offering) and a gift in itself. It is part of a reciprocal gift-giving that cements social ties in the cyberculture. The visitor - the newbie - turns up, introduces his/herself, and offers fic. This is the arrival gift of the newcomer. They are, in turn, offered the reciprocal gift of feedback. This is both a form of gratitude for the original gift, and a reciprocal gift. The newcomer must thus offer thanks for the feedback to complete the exchange. I'm focusing on newbies here because it is there that the social rules governing gift-giving are most often formalised, and offence is most easily given. The newbie that turns up without a gift can be greeted politely enough, but, as a rule, they are not greeted with extended conversations, merely the polite motions of welcome. The newbie that offers fic (or photos, or icons), however, is greeted more avidly with the reciprocal gift of feedback. If they are not, this is often taken as an insult and the newcomer feels unwelcome. How many of us have encountered situations where we have joined a new community or mailing list, posted something and waited anxiously to see if someone comments? Some people I know often join new communities to post their stuff to, flooding people's flists, knowing that people are more likely to respond to newcomer posts.
(A side note - I mean here newcomers to the community, not necessarily the fandom. Different communities and mailing lists comprise distinct subsets of the (syber)culture of fandom, so the babylon5 community, for instance, is very different from the B5RS mailing list.)
If that newcomer receives feedback and then does not respond to it, some people will be forgiving - but the more socially sensitive will be offended. The newcomer must follow the strictest rules of courtesy, not those acceptable between long-standing acquaintances. They must offer thanks for the reciprocal welcoming gift of feedback. This cements the link between the newcomer and the community - the "I turned up, I posted, everyone feedbacked, and they made me feel welcome" route to social interaction.
In the 'real world', the example of thank-you cards is somewhat flawed. More appropriate is the example of hand-made gifts - not only do you say 'thank you' for receiving them, but you also offer a compliment on the gift itself, which is then cause for gratitude on the part of the gift-giver. The notable aspect of this is that hand-made gifts are more common among close friends or family members, where the gift can be conflated with the gratitude on the part of the recipient. This implies a certain artifically created and enforced 'closeness' to online communities which perhaps explains some of the confusion: we expect a certain degree of distance and caution when we encounter people online, yet the fandom rules dictate that we behave in a familiar manner. This may be part of the reason that some people feel that feedback is merely a 'thank you' and does not require reciprocity: it gives the wrong degree of intimate familiarity, implying that the gift was crafted specifically for the recipient's pleasure, and that the compliment goes over and above social requirements, thus resulting in a need for another thank-you.
Or maybe we're just obsessed with appearing inadvertantly rude. Hmmm. Thoughts?
Feedback is both gratitude (the 'thanks' offering) and a gift in itself. It is part of a reciprocal gift-giving that cements social ties in the cyberculture. The visitor - the newbie - turns up, introduces his/herself, and offers fic. This is the arrival gift of the newcomer. They are, in turn, offered the reciprocal gift of feedback. This is both a form of gratitude for the original gift, and a reciprocal gift. The newcomer must thus offer thanks for the feedback to complete the exchange. I'm focusing on newbies here because it is there that the social rules governing gift-giving are most often formalised, and offence is most easily given. The newbie that turns up without a gift can be greeted politely enough, but, as a rule, they are not greeted with extended conversations, merely the polite motions of welcome. The newbie that offers fic (or photos, or icons), however, is greeted more avidly with the reciprocal gift of feedback. If they are not, this is often taken as an insult and the newcomer feels unwelcome. How many of us have encountered situations where we have joined a new community or mailing list, posted something and waited anxiously to see if someone comments? Some people I know often join new communities to post their stuff to, flooding people's flists, knowing that people are more likely to respond to newcomer posts.
(A side note - I mean here newcomers to the community, not necessarily the fandom. Different communities and mailing lists comprise distinct subsets of the (syber)culture of fandom, so the babylon5 community, for instance, is very different from the B5RS mailing list.)
If that newcomer receives feedback and then does not respond to it, some people will be forgiving - but the more socially sensitive will be offended. The newcomer must follow the strictest rules of courtesy, not those acceptable between long-standing acquaintances. They must offer thanks for the reciprocal welcoming gift of feedback. This cements the link between the newcomer and the community - the "I turned up, I posted, everyone feedbacked, and they made me feel welcome" route to social interaction.
In the 'real world', the example of thank-you cards is somewhat flawed. More appropriate is the example of hand-made gifts - not only do you say 'thank you' for receiving them, but you also offer a compliment on the gift itself, which is then cause for gratitude on the part of the gift-giver. The notable aspect of this is that hand-made gifts are more common among close friends or family members, where the gift can be conflated with the gratitude on the part of the recipient. This implies a certain artifically created and enforced 'closeness' to online communities which perhaps explains some of the confusion: we expect a certain degree of distance and caution when we encounter people online, yet the fandom rules dictate that we behave in a familiar manner. This may be part of the reason that some people feel that feedback is merely a 'thank you' and does not require reciprocity: it gives the wrong degree of intimate familiarity, implying that the gift was crafted specifically for the recipient's pleasure, and that the compliment goes over and above social requirements, thus resulting in a need for another thank-you.
Or maybe we're just obsessed with appearing inadvertantly rude. Hmmm. Thoughts?