Status Traps: Learning from web2 social networks

Social networks tend to concentrate status in a few highly visible users, and the article argues that designers should treat this as a policy problem because high inequality makes it hard for newcomers to stay. It explains that status indicators such as karma, follower counts, XP and verified badges drive behavior, and that newcomers mimic top users, get discouraged by unwinnable leaderboards, and face resistance from entrenched high-status groups. Proposed mitigations include temporary status boosts for new users, making status less visible, ranking users in cohorts of similar status, and letting status decay over time. The article credits Eugene Wei's "Status as a Service" as the most important influence on its ideas.