Wikipedia:Credential ban
![]() | This is a failed proposal. Consensus for its implementation was not established within a reasonable period of time. If you want to revive discussion, please use the talk page or initiate a thread at the village pump. |
This proposal seeks to be a foolproof solution to the problems associated with credentials on Wikipedia and with verifying those credentials. Disallow the use of credentials on Wikipedia.
Problems with credentials on Wikipedia
editThere are a multitude of problems associated with the use of credentials on Wikipedia. The following is a short list, compiled from observations from other discussions:
- First and foremost: If every editor is truly equal, credentials serve no purpose on Wikipedia.
- Allowing the continued use of credentials leaves the door open for editors to use the "I have a PhD so stop arguing" argument.
- No credential is a substitute for content policies such as WP:ATT and WP:NPOV.
- Verifing credentials threatens to split the community into two groups of users:
- Trusted users with verified credentials
- Users with unverified credentials or no credentials at all
- No simple credential verification system can be foolproof.
Implementation
editThis would be the simpest proposal to implement of all the credential proposals.
- Using credentials to attempt to win a dispute would result in a warning, similar to those given for legal threats, repeated use may result in a temporary block.
- Credentials that could create a sense of elitism are not to be allowed on Wikipedia, even userpages.
- Listing advanced degrees and high level positions within one's field can create a sense of elitism
- "I have a PhD in Biology" - Bad
- "I know biology well and am interested in it" - Good
- "I'm a movie studio executive" - Bad
- "I have experience with movies" - Good
- "I'm chair of the Harvard law department." - Bad
- "I'm a lawyer in the Boston area." - Good
- Basic biographical facts do not create a sense of elitism
- "I live in Houston, Texas" - Good
- "I'm president of the Houston Historical Society" - Bad
- Listing advanced degrees and high level positions within one's field can create a sense of elitism
Other types of personal credentials are not as obviously (un)acceptable as the above examples. A general rule of thumb is:
- Anything that can be seen as a status symbol or gives a sense of status within any community should probably not be included in the Wikipedia community.
User names
editMany users wish to edit under their real names or a pseudonym that may reflect their actual name, profession, or status. This section exists as a minor "loophole" to this proposal. As usernames do not reflect a sense of elitism as much as a list of credentials or simply saying "I have a PhD" does, usernames that could possibly reflect credentials are allowed. These users would still be held to the remaining policies though. User:PhDBio would still have to cite sources and would not be allowed to use credentials as a method to win a dispute. User:RichardDawkins would still be held to the same standard of accountability as User:AnyUser and would still have to follow all other policies, such as WP:COI.
See also
edit- Other related proposed changes to Wikipedia
- User:Jimbo Wales/Credential Verification
- Wikipedia:Administrators accountability - a proposal for power at Wikipedia to be accompanied by accountability
- Wikipedia:Credentials - a proposal for credentials to be verified
- Wikipedia talk:Biographies of living persons - a suggestion to extend the BLP policy to claims made by users on their user pages
- Wikipedia:Honesty
- Wikipedia:Arbitration policy a suggestion that "Arbcom will establish and maintain and over time improve: a policy on transparency that will provide for accountability of Arbcom members through public knowledge, that increases over time, of the identities of Arbcom members."
- Wiki of Trust - A proposal that would enhance the security how personal ID would be verified.
- meta:Talk:CheckUser policy#Real name policy
- User:Misza13/Nobody cares about your credentials