A single anonymous upvote makes people 13% more likely to help others online

Giving a new question on a Q&A site an anonymous upvote makes the person who asked it much more likely to contribute to the community later. This effect is stronger for answering other people's questions than for asking more of their own. The increased visibility from the upvote is key for encouraging people to answer questions.

Online communities rely on volunteers to create content and answer questions, but participation has been falling. This paper shows a simple, cheap way to encourage people to contribute more. It suggests that a small, early positive signal can make a big difference in keeping online communities active.