<p>A very good question that did get me thinking.</p>
<p>I think <a href="https://stats.meta.stackexchange.com/questions/6597/how-to-vote-on-partial-answers?cb=1#comment22562_6597">whuber's comment</a> is absolutely key:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>A &quot;partial answer&quot; suggests the question is not a good one for the site because it raises multiple issues.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So here is what I will do in the case of <em>good</em> and <em>partial</em> answers: upvote them. Because they are good. Yes, <a href="https://stats.meta.stackexchange.com/questions/6597/how-to-vote-on-partial-answers?cb=1#comment22561_6597">that will likely reduce the probability of later <em>full</em> answers</a>. I will consider this a feature, not a bug of upvoting the partial answer: if the asker is unsatisfied with the (good!) partial answer, they should post a new, more focused, follow-up question.</p>
<p>Essentially, I believe that rewarding good partial answers will have an educational impact <em>on the asker</em> that will overall improve the quality of this site.</p>
