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Pseudonymous people comment more

If you're using your real name, it's less likely that you'll comment than if you're using a pseudonym.

 

Fernando Alfonso III

Internet Culture

Posted on Jan 10, 2012   Updated on Jun 2, 2021, 10:52 pm CDT

The most popular and valuable comments online are posted using a pseudonym, reports a new study done by a company that promotes online commenting.

The typical commenter using a pseudonym was 6.5 more times likely to comment than those who were simply anonymous or those who used their real names, such as on Facebook, which tries to verify identity, reported Disqus, a San Francisco-based commenting service.

“Pseudonyms are the most valuable contributors to communities because they contribute the highest quantity and quality of comments,” wrote the company in an infographic posted on its site. “[T]hey accounted for 61 percent of total comments.”

The study also shows how “more than 60 percent of comments using pseudonyms were positive, and almost 30 percent were rated as neutral, while only 11 percent were rated negative,” reported Gigaom.

The company drew its data from the more than one million websites that use its service.

Check out the infographic below.

Unrecorded

Photo by Thaddäus Zoltkowski

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*First Published: Jan 10, 2012, 6:34 pm CST