User:Mandruss/Respect your elders

People who have devoted a significant portion of their lives to building and improving the encyclopedia deserve respect. But there are also practical reasons to defer to "elders".

Young and Oldman

A boy shows respect for his elder by asking him for his feedback, advice, or help. The elder is trying to figure out where the sails go.

Consider two Wikipedia editors, Young and Oldman. Oldman has far more editing experience than Young. For purposes of this essay, we can say that Oldman is far older than Young, and is Young's elder.

When Young disagrees with Oldman about Issue 918 at Article A, who is more likely to be correct? While there are the usual exceptions to the "rule", Oldman is far more likely to be correct. Even if Young believes that Wikipedia policies and guidelines are on his side, the odds are low that he is correct. Most likely, Young hasn't yet mastered the complex, nuanced ins-and-outs of Wikipedia PAGs, so Oldman seems wrong to him.

Common, unwritten principles and practices also may be factors in Issue 918, and the knowledge about them comes only with long experience. The history of Issue 918, Article A, or Wikipedia itself may be a consideration, and Young may not be aware of that history. Oldman probably has insights and instincts that Young does not have.

Young can't know what he doesn't know; that's very difficult for anyone on- or off-wiki. This is sometimes called being "in over one's head" or "under the boardwalk".

Young should keep these things in mind when disagreeing with Oldman about Issue 918. Young's manner and tone should be unaggressive and deferential. If Oldman's explanations don't make sense to him, the probability is high that he simply lacks the experience necessary to understand them. He should be patient and should be willing to "Go along now, understand later." Oldman and others will take note and respect him for that.

In all likelihood, Young will grow old, change his name to Wiseman, and spend some of his time giving the same explanations to the next generation of Youngs, whilst reflecting on fond memories of his innocent and carefree youth. He will appreciate this essay far more than he did when he was Young, since it will make his elder years significantly easier. Then it will be his turn to be on the receiving end of the deference. He will have earned that. Eventually, Wiseman will pass away like Michael in The Godfather Part III, or be indeffed like Fredo, and the cycle of life will continue.

All old Wikipedia editors were young once. Some of them did "young" right, others did not.

Determining Oldman's age

A good overview of any registered editor's editing history can be obtained as follows:

• Go to the editor's contribs page. There are various paths, including via the page history for a page the user has edited recently. The editor's user talk page is often a good choice. Some editors include a link to their contribs page in their signature; in those cases, you can get there with one click.
• Scroll to the bottom of the contribs page.
• Follow the "Edit statistics" link.
• Be patient. The longer the editing history, the longer it takes to generate the page.

For an IP (unregistered) editor, it's difficult to determine very much about their editing history. Young need not assume they're old merely because they talk like it.

Young and discussions

When participating in discussions, Young should bear in mind that, most likely, many of the other participants are his elders. He should avoid commenting too often or too verbosely. He should do far more listening than talking: Lyndon B. Johnson, the 36th U.S. president, is credited with saying, "You aren't learning anything when you're talking."

The longer a thread, the less likely that new arrivals will read much existing discussion before commenting. If there is a closer, the more difficult their largely thankless task will be. By avoiding flooding a discussion, Young shows respect for all of those elders. (He also shows respect for his peers.)

Related to this concept is the widely-accepted essay, Don't bludgeon the process.

The cocktail party

A cocktail party is under way. It's for adults, but some have brought their children along. The adults are clustered in groups of two to six. A 14-year-old boy moves from group to group assertively disagreeing with the adults.

If you're one of the adults, what are you thinking about that boy?

The police department

A police officer with six months' experience assertively disagrees with veteran cops about the proper way to conduct traffic stops. She refuses to defer to their judgment.

If you're one of the veteran cops, what are you thinking about that officer?

What does the web say about this?

AI Overview

As of this writing, a Google search for "respect your elders" yields the following "AI Overview":

"Respect your elders" is a cultural norm that encourages younger people to show respect to older people. It's based on the idea that older people are wiser and have more experience.

Why is it important?

• Shows appreciation: Respecting elders shows that you value their experience and wisdom.
• Shows consideration: Respecting elders shows that you consider them to be valuable members of your community.
• Shows humility: Respecting elders shows that you are willing to learn from those who are older and wiser.

How to show respect?

• Listen: Listen to their advice and ask questions.
• Be polite: Maintain a respectful tone and demeanor.
• Be patient: Give them time if they need it.
• Be kind: Offer to help, and do small acts of kindness.
• Tell them: Let them know that you respect them.
• Learn from them: Ask them to teach you a skill.