<p>I noticed <a href="https://stats.meta.stackexchange.com/questions/974/what-motivates-people-to-answer-questions">this</a> post and I was fascinated by the answers given.</p>

<p>I am currently a 2nd year PhD student in Statistics and this page has helped me tremendously, up to the point where I decided to create a user and participate actively in the community.</p>

<p>I feel that getting badges and scores motivates me to to further participate but there are other factors that play in</p>

<ul>
<li>I intend to put my CV profile on my Curriculum Vitae (CV) for various reasons.</li>
<li>I like to participate in discussions on topics that I am fascinated about with like-minded people. I also like the open criticism/academic vibe in the discussions.</li>
<li>I feel that I am learning and becoming more sharp in the subjects the more I participate.</li>
<li>I feel a sense of approval and recognition when I'm here.</li>
</ul>

<p>When one looks into how many badges are awarded, there is an obvious trend. I.e. there seems to be a large stream of new users, that create profiles and then do not participate all too much.</p>

<p>There are rather few badges that have been given out for comments and voting specifically.</p>

<p>I feel that there are some things that can be done to further motivate new users to use this stack exchange and participate.</p>

<p>So my question is: <em>Have these things been reviewed/discussed, are there any remedies that have worked in the past? Do we need to expose new users to other motivation factors?</em></p>
