Favouritism? or just getting into the good books of that said member...

It's an unconscious effort really and the only conscious effort I would imagine is when a moderator makes an eHelp (it's out of the inbox in thirty minutes, pretty much).

When I look at a eHelp, and I know the user, I ask myself this question: "is there outside information that I know about this person that can contribute to my response, if I were to write one?" Most of the time the answer for me is yes, and I'm more likely going to begin (and sometimes submit)  a response for that eHelp.

When the author is a guest or a not so well known member and they write a lot and go through everything, it makes me more comfortable knowing that they've provided enough to go on to respond comfortably. I will be just as likely to respond as if if they were someone who I knew and had outside (the eHelp) information for.

It has nothing to do with a member having connections, trying to get a mental smiley face from them nor me liking certain members more. It's whether or not I can feel comfortable responding to them.

I know I've created eHelps previously and actively gone out and asked my friends to answer it, because I was needing help. Some people who submit eHelps don't have those resources, admittedly, but it's an advantage of being an active part of the website I guess.

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"Who are you?" Sophie asked.
She received no response to this either, but felt a momentary
confusion as to whether it was she or her reflection who asked
the question.

Personally, I just think it depends on the subject really.

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"We have nothing to fear but fear itself" | Rise
------ Vote for an OB forum ------

I personally find that I have more compassion towards those I know on a personal level. I sometimes find it a bit easier to reply to something I already have a little knowledge on and when its for somebody you know, you can often know what are the right things to say, what cheers them up, what they want to hear etc. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing.

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Week in and week out,
Your lucky charms will always let you down,
Maybe next week we'll see,
Maybe

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I've had some eHelps that didn't get much of a response...

Personally, I just think it depends on the subject really.

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It really depends on the subject I think. Sometimes you get one and you know in your heart you cannot answer it, even through it hurts you not too.

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So Others May Live.
- Firefighting Creed

Proud Firefighter

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I don't think it's favoritism, personally. It's the quality of the reply that matters, not the reputation of the person replying. If it is favoritism, well there's honestly not much point in answering it if you're going to be given negative feedback because you don't have the same reputation as the more popular members.

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