Community Central:Assume good faith

Assume good faith is a fundamental principle and a core policy on every Wikicity. As we allow anyone to edit, it follows that we assume that most people who work on the project are trying to help it, not hurt it. If this weren't true, a wiki project would be doomed from the beginning.

What constitutes GoodFaith? According to MeatBallWiki:
 * No intention of malice.
 * People trying their best to do their best.
 * People trying their best to do their best for the greater good of the community.
 * Friendliness, honesty, caring.

So, when you can reasonably assume that something is a well-intentioned error, correct it without just reverting it or labeling it as vandalism. When you disagree with someone, remember that they probably believe that they are helping the project. Consider using talk pages to explain yourself, and give others the opportunity to do the same. This can avoid misunderstandings and prevent problems from escalating.

Assuming good faith is about intentions, not actions. Well-meaning people make mistakes, and you should correct them when they do. What you should not do is act like their mistake was deliberate. Correct, but don't scold. There will be people on the wiki you disagree with. Even if they're wrong, that doesn't mean they're trying to wreck your Wikicity.

Example
I'm not sure if this is an example of assuming good faith, or of assuming too much good faith. In September 2005, an unregistered user created an article with the title "chem" on around 30 different wikis. Each time, the only content of the article was "hello". I regarded it as cross wiki vandalism, but it was great to see that on four wikis, good faith had truly been assumed, and the person I'd regarded as a vandal was simply greeted as a confused newcomer. The following sections show the different reactions to "chem". Angela (talk) 17:28, 10 Sep 2005 (UTC)


 * Amazone
 * Hello Chem, would you like to introduce yourself?--Eduardo 01:56, 6 Set 2005 (UTC)


 * Activism
 * DeletedPage
 * Hello, welcome to wiki, if this page is a real one, my apologies, please remove the DeletedPage. Otherwise, try messing around with wiki in the Sandbox. Best, MarkDilley


 * Alaska
 * This page does not appear to belong in the Alaska wiki, since it doesn't contain any information about Alaska, and it isn't a user page. Please revise the content on this page so that it confoms to the purpose of this site, or this page will soon be removed. If you do have an interest in Alaska, and wish to contribute to the Alaska wiki, please feel free to do so.--Doug 06:41, 6 Sep 2005 (UTC)


 * Ao2
 * Hello
 * -Hello Chem. Good Luck. -Cesio