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=VRCWiki:Conflict of Interest=
'''Conflict of Interest (COI)''' refers to an individual’s connection to any significant affiliation they may have with a given project, such as a World, Avatar, Prefab, or Community. '''Conflict of Interest editing (COI editing)''' is when someone closely connected to a project creates a page for that project or makes significant edits to it.
'''Conflict of interest (COI) editing''' involves contributing to the VRChat Wiki about yourself, family, friends, clients, employers, or your financial and other relationships. Any external relationship can trigger a conflict of interest. Someone having a conflict of interest is a description of a situation, not a judgment about that person's opinions, integrity, or good faith.


COI editing is strongly discouraged on the VRChat Wiki. It undermines public confidence and risks causing public embarrassment to the individuals and organizations being promoted. Editors with a COI are sometimes unaware of whether or how much it has influenced their editing. If COI editing causes disruption, an administrator may opt to place blocks on the involved accounts.
COI isn’t just a standalone policy but works alongside other important guidelines like [[VRCWiki:Notability|Notability]], [[VRCWiki:Neutral point of view|Neutral Point of View]] (NPOV), or [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research No Original Research] (NOR). These policies work together to prevent issues like biased content or undue promotion of a person’s own project. For instance, Notability must be determined by independent sources, not by the person creating the project, which is where the COI policy helps by restricting creators from self-defining their projects’ Notability.


Editors with a COI, including paid editors, are expected to disclose it whenever they seek to change an affected article's content. Anyone editing for pay must disclose who is paying them, who the client is, and any other relevant affiliation; this is a requirement of the VRChat Wiki. COI editors are strongly discouraged from editing affected articles directly and can propose changes on article talk pages instead. However, our policy on matters relating to living people allows very obvious errors to be fixed quickly, including by the subject.
While it’s not assumed that someone with a COI will intentionally promote or advertise their project, there’s a greater risk of unintentionally embellishing information, leaving out key facts, or treating the page as if it’s a personal primary source.


Editors with a COI should follow VRChat Wiki policies and best practices scrupulously:
== Identifying a Conflict of Interest ==


* you should disclose your COI when involved with affected articles;
You would have a Conflict of Interest if you:
* you are strongly discouraged from editing affected articles directly;
* Created the project.
* you should propose changes on talk pages, or by posting a note at the COI noticeboard, so that they can be peer-reviewed;
* Contributed significantly to developing, moderating, or running the project.
* you should not act as a reviewer of affected article(s) if there is any dispute on its content;
* Were the main financial backer of the project (e.g., through a commission).
* you should respect other editors by keeping discussions concise.


Note that no one on the VRChat Wiki controls articles. If the VRChat Wiki hosts an article, others may add information that would otherwise remain little known. They may also decide to delete the article or decide to keep it should someone later [[:Category:Pages Marked for Deletion|request deletion.]]
== COI Policies ==


==Paid Editing==
The VRChat Wiki has two main policies regarding COI and COI editing:


Being paid to contribute to the VRChat Wiki is one form of financial COI; it places the paid editor in a conflict between their employer's goals and the VRChat Wiki's goals. The kind of paid editing of most concern to the community involves using the VRChat Wiki for public relations and marketing purposes. Sometimes called "paid advocacy," this is problematic because it invariably reflects the interests of the client or employer.
# <big>Editors who created or contributed significantly to a project are '''not allowed''' to '''create''' pages for that project.</big>
# <big>Editors with a COI are limited to making only [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Minor_edit '''minor edits'''] to pages related to their project.</big>


More generally, an editor has a financial conflict of interest whenever they write about a topic with which they have a close financial relationship. This includes being an owner, employee, contractor, investor or other stakeholder.
Pages created in violation of these policies may be '''deleted''', and the editor will be notified.


The VRChat Wiki requires that all paid editing be disclosed. If you receive or expect to receive compensation (money, goods or services) for your contributions to the VRChat Wiki, the policy is:
Editors who repeatedly violate this policy may face further actions, including editing restrictions or removal of their editing rights.


* you must disclose who is paying you, on whose behalf the edits are made, and any other relevant affiliation (on the talk page)
== Situations That May Not Be Conflicts of Interest ==
* you should make the disclosure on your user page, on affected talk pages, and whenever you discuss the topic;
 
* you are strongly discouraged from editing affected articles directly;
Conflict of Interest isn’t always a clear-cut situation. It’s more of a spectrum, where even a slight affiliation can be enough to warrant caution. In cases of doubt, it's better to disclose any potential COI. However, there are many instances where someone with a mild affiliation can still contribute meaningfully.
* you should propose changes on talk pages so that they can be peer-reviewed;
 
* you should not act as a reviewer of affected article(s) if there is any dispute on its content;
One way to gauge your potential COI is by considering how easy it would be to end your involvement with the project. If you could easily walk away without much impact, you likely have a minor COI. But if your involvement is deeply tied to the project’s success or history, '''your COI is more significant'''.
* you should respect volunteers by keeping discussions concise.
 
If you think you have even a slight COI, it’s a good practice to mention it in your edit summary and ensure that your edits follow all guidelines, particularly [[VRCWiki:NPOV|NPOV]].
 
Here are some examples, from most to least significant:
 
==== Having a personal relationship with someone affiliated with a project ====
This is a tricky one. Relationships can vary from close personal ties to casual online connections (e.g., "mutuals on social media"). Only you can assess the nature of your relationship and whether it would influence your edits. Be extra cautious here.
 
==== Financial support for a project ====
Supporting a project financially can show significant interest, but it doesn’t always mean you have direct involvement. A financial backer might still be independent enough to edit objectively but should still disclose their support. This isn’t always a major COI on its own but should be noted.
 
==== Community membership ====
Being part of a project’s community might mean participating in events or discussions, but this involvement is usually less concerning in terms of COI. As long as standard guidelines are followed, community membership usually presents a low COI risk.
 
==== Strong interest in a project ====
Having a passion for a project doesn’t necessarily mean you have a COI. In fact, it’s encouraged! Everyone contributing to the VRChat Wiki does so as a volunteer, and editors often contribute to topics that interest them. Just make sure your edits remain neutral and well-sourced.
 
== Example Scenario ==
 
Let’s consider a hypothetical project called "'''Super Fun World'''":
 
* The creator of Super Fun World cannot create a page for the project, but a community member can.
* If the community member is also a Patreon supporter of the project, they should disclose this in the edit summary.
* A 3D modeller for Super Fun World notices a typo on the page and corrects it with a minor edit.
* The creator of Super Fun World sees an incorrect event date on the page and fixes it with a minor edit, providing a valid source.
* A dedicated fan of Super Fun World reads a new development blog and uses the information to update the article in a neutral, sourced manner.
 
== Conflict of Interest Noticebox ==
 
If an article contains content primarily written by someone with a '''partial''' Conflict of Interest, it will display the following noticebox:
{{Noticebox/Conflict of interest}}
 
This noticebox cannot be used to bypass the two core COI policies. Pages created in violation of these policies are still subject to deletion, even if the noticebox is present.
 
To add this noticebox to a page, use the following text:
<nowiki>{{Noticebox/Conflict of interest}}</nowiki>
 
== See also ==
* [[VRCWiki:Guidelines]]
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Conflict_of_interest Wikipedia:Conflict of interest] on Wikipedia
 
[[Category:VRCWiki policies]]

Latest revision as of 20:36, 8 October 2024

Conflict of Interest (COI) refers to an individual’s connection to any significant affiliation they may have with a given project, such as a World, Avatar, Prefab, or Community. Conflict of Interest editing (COI editing) is when someone closely connected to a project creates a page for that project or makes significant edits to it.

COI isn’t just a standalone policy but works alongside other important guidelines like Notability, Neutral Point of View (NPOV), or No Original Research (NOR). These policies work together to prevent issues like biased content or undue promotion of a person’s own project. For instance, Notability must be determined by independent sources, not by the person creating the project, which is where the COI policy helps by restricting creators from self-defining their projects’ Notability.

While it’s not assumed that someone with a COI will intentionally promote or advertise their project, there’s a greater risk of unintentionally embellishing information, leaving out key facts, or treating the page as if it’s a personal primary source.

Identifying a Conflict of Interest

You would have a Conflict of Interest if you:

  • Created the project.
  • Contributed significantly to developing, moderating, or running the project.
  • Were the main financial backer of the project (e.g., through a commission).

COI Policies

The VRChat Wiki has two main policies regarding COI and COI editing:

  1. Editors who created or contributed significantly to a project are not allowed to create pages for that project.
  2. Editors with a COI are limited to making only minor edits to pages related to their project.

Pages created in violation of these policies may be deleted, and the editor will be notified.

Editors who repeatedly violate this policy may face further actions, including editing restrictions or removal of their editing rights.

Situations That May Not Be Conflicts of Interest

Conflict of Interest isn’t always a clear-cut situation. It’s more of a spectrum, where even a slight affiliation can be enough to warrant caution. In cases of doubt, it's better to disclose any potential COI. However, there are many instances where someone with a mild affiliation can still contribute meaningfully.

One way to gauge your potential COI is by considering how easy it would be to end your involvement with the project. If you could easily walk away without much impact, you likely have a minor COI. But if your involvement is deeply tied to the project’s success or history, your COI is more significant.

If you think you have even a slight COI, it’s a good practice to mention it in your edit summary and ensure that your edits follow all guidelines, particularly NPOV.

Here are some examples, from most to least significant:

Having a personal relationship with someone affiliated with a project

This is a tricky one. Relationships can vary from close personal ties to casual online connections (e.g., "mutuals on social media"). Only you can assess the nature of your relationship and whether it would influence your edits. Be extra cautious here.

Financial support for a project

Supporting a project financially can show significant interest, but it doesn’t always mean you have direct involvement. A financial backer might still be independent enough to edit objectively but should still disclose their support. This isn’t always a major COI on its own but should be noted.

Community membership

Being part of a project’s community might mean participating in events or discussions, but this involvement is usually less concerning in terms of COI. As long as standard guidelines are followed, community membership usually presents a low COI risk.

Strong interest in a project

Having a passion for a project doesn’t necessarily mean you have a COI. In fact, it’s encouraged! Everyone contributing to the VRChat Wiki does so as a volunteer, and editors often contribute to topics that interest them. Just make sure your edits remain neutral and well-sourced.

Example Scenario

Let’s consider a hypothetical project called "Super Fun World":

  • The creator of Super Fun World cannot create a page for the project, but a community member can.
  • If the community member is also a Patreon supporter of the project, they should disclose this in the edit summary.
  • A 3D modeller for Super Fun World notices a typo on the page and corrects it with a minor edit.
  • The creator of Super Fun World sees an incorrect event date on the page and fixes it with a minor edit, providing a valid source.
  • A dedicated fan of Super Fun World reads a new development blog and uses the information to update the article in a neutral, sourced manner.

Conflict of Interest Noticebox

If an article contains content primarily written by someone with a partial Conflict of Interest, it will display the following noticebox:

UserpageCOI.svg
V · EConflict of interest
This page was written by an involved party in violation of the Conflict of interest policy, and may be subject to removal. Once this page has enough edits from varying parties, this notice may be removed.

Consider editing this page.

This noticebox cannot be used to bypass the two core COI policies. Pages created in violation of these policies are still subject to deletion, even if the noticebox is present.

To add this noticebox to a page, use the following text: {{Noticebox/Conflict of interest}}

See also

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