Designing Reputation Systems for the Social Web

Abstract

Online Reputation Systems are a key, but under-appreciated, component of virtually every social web application. They play an important role in inducing user participation, good behavior and quality contributions. Despite their importance, however, their practical design and implementation has, so far, typically been the result of trial and error. This paper distills some of the design principles that have emerged after more than a decade of research and practical experience on the topic. I provide a practical overview of the promises and challenges of online reputation mechanism design, and how to implement the right incentives for good behavior, truthful reporting and resistance to manipulation.

Keywords: reputation systems, web 2.0, social web, online communities, crowdsourcing