YouTube has announced their decision of no longer showing dislike counts to users, rather restricting it so only the poster may access it. The platform says it's made the change to reduce "stress and embarrassment" for creators in order for their experience to be as pleasant as possible.
The dislike button is not disappearing completely, users can still click thumbs down in order to inform the recommendation algorithm about content they didn't like. But, when a user clicks the 'thumbs down' button, there will be no count letting users know how many people also didn't like the video, creating less hate for the creator.
According to YouTube, this decision is due to the data obtained by an experiment the company did earlier this year. It found that when a user can't see the dislike count they are less likely to click it. Results of this change have already been seen, with dislike numbers heavily decreasing after the update.
Youtube is not the first company to do this: major platforms such as Instagram tried this for similar mental health-related reasons and began to hide its 'Like' counts globally.
The decision caught people's attention and attracted lots of controversy, but YouTube believes the change will better protect its creators from harassment and overall bullying on the platform. The decision influenced companies and now they have been rethinking how their systems work, creating a good example for others to consider the mental health of people, particularly minors, when using their platforms.
Bibliography
BBC. (2021, November 12). YouTube removing dislike 'discourages trolls' but 'unhelpful for users'. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-59264070
The YouTube Team. (2021, November 10). An update to dislikes on YouTube. YouTube Blog. https://blog.youtube/news-and-events/update-to-youtube/
YouTube Dislike Button: Video Streaming Platform Flags Changes In Attempt To ‘Protect Creators’. (2021, November 13). [Photograph]. Quick Telecast. https://quicktelecast.com/youtube-dislike-button-video-streaming-platform-flags-changes-in-attempt-to-protect-creators/