Does life experience change the way people use Steem?

The cryptosphere is a very young space and many of the people within it are very young also. There is a large and diverse range of people at Steemit for example but I wonder, how many are parents? How many are even financially independent to some degree in the real world? does it matter?

What I think I recognize here to some degree is a relatively large difference between the behaviors between generations and, between those who have experienced a fair bit of life or, who have children.

I am not saying this because I have a kid and therefore I know stuff but, I do think there is something to be said about having the responsibility of another's life on one's shoulders and, I do think it changes behaviours. At least for me, I think I take my own behaviour more into account, even when my daughter isn't present. I also take my ethical and moral positions more seriously than I did previously also.

I don't know everyone's story but, I do see some people who have grown in apparent privilege and are possibly still relying on their parents for support, behaving in ways that indicate a level of immaturity or, ignorance to life's sufferings. I wonder if a lack or abundance of life lessons is indicative of behavior here and how various backgrounds or lack of experience may affect actions and perspectives.

It is hard to tell who and what people are because of anonymity but hypothetically, what could we predict? Could we profile people accurately based on basic data points?

I know when I read some people's fiction stories I can pretty much tell how old they are. With my background, I can definitely tell if their mother tongue isn't English as the sentence structure is immature and the use or overuse of some forms is a telltale sign, as is the clunkiness of vocabulary. Some just try too hard and are too literal and it shines through. But, I have spent the last 15 years reading text from foreigners so, it really isn't overly difficult for me.

Based on the topics and structure, I can also tell if they are experienced. Perhaps they are able to impress other non-native audiences but, would their work and ideas hold up under real scrutiny? I saw someone advertising proofreading services the other day and in their first paragraph, I counted about 5-6 errors at a glance. Errors aren't a problem.. unless you are offering proofreading services.

However, the writing itself is only one part of it. I wonder more about the behaviours and perspectives of Steemit. Does the average person without children use the platform differently than those with? Do they view the level of personal gain and community sharing differently? How many of the bidbot operators have kids? Does someone who has survived cancer have the same view of earning here as someone who is just into their university? Is the willingness to flag or not affected by history or life position? Are the early 20s users more likely to be more greedy or selfish than someone in their 40s?

We can't have the answers to these things but my intuition based on my own experience and my observations here tells me that on average, those who have seen more of life and have more real-world responsibility are the ones who not only take this more seriously but the ones who are 'less* likely to engage in borderline or anti-social behavior. This wouldn't be a hard rule of course, there is a lot of probable overlap but, that is what I think I observe.

Based on this, in my thinking, the reason for it is because the people who have experienced real hardship or do have real responsibilities like children are probably more understanding of the importance of a social support network and ar therefore likely to be more compassionate towards others also as they have known hard times.

Even something I think of as recent like the 2008 economic crisis was ten years ago. If someone is 22, what do they really know of it? Sure, they can talk of the theory that they learned at school but, do they know what it is like to have customers cut their contacts because they just can't afford training? Or, do they know what it is to sell a house to pay for a mother with cancer? I do. And, so do many others. What about the dot-com bubble at the end of the 90s or the global recession at the start of the 90s? Does actually experiencing these things change behavior?

I wonder if there is a difference between the behavior of women who have given birth and who have not, who have lost a child or who are just out of their teens themselves. I wonder if there is a difference between the men who have never really had a serious relationship or, those who have held their partners hand during childbirth unsure if their partner is going to make it. Do they treat the platform differently do they treat the people on the platform differently?

I also wonder if between the experienced and the less so if there is a difference in their willingness to engage, the quality/type of content, the level of resilience and the drive to actually make this work. Do they take it more seriously, are they more professional, do they bring their skills onto the platform?

From what I see, many are younger and if you ask older people they will generally tell you how stupid they were when they were young. They thought they knew a lot but as life unfolded, they realized they knew very little. What they know now they also know they know very little but, some of it isn't classroom lessons out of a textbook, it is battle tested.

I just wonder if we did know more about people, what could we see? It is pretty interesting o think about how the experience of different users might affect the way they use the platform, how do they use their votes, do they sell them, how willing they are to push or commit to a long-term view or, if they are more likely to jump ship if it gets too hard.

These kinds of data points and many others would likely yield some very interesting results that could change the way the platform development goes. Perhaps it would cater for a different type of user or, new apps might be created. Of course, this info isn't available for the most part since people join anonymously. I wonder, are those with kids more or less likely to be anonymous here?

Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]