Introduction
Here at LA:aHD we have tried to create a Mush where roleplay is perpetuated by the concepts of cooperation, maturity and mutual understanding, while keeping to the 'real world' feel of a non-consent mush. Most of the time it works. We rely on our players to play by these lofty goals and, in turn, most of the time they do.
Which leaves the times that they don't; the times that someone misunderstands or someone believes another person misunderstands, or the times that one player believes another person to have cheated.
In these cases, players can choose to file a Formal Complaint with staff and request that staff become involved.
What Triggers a Formal Complaint?
Short of witnessing an abuse, policy violation, cheating or some other unwanted behavior, the the only way that staff will insert themselves into player relations is if a complaint is filed. The reasoning behind this is simple: LA:aHD is a game for adults. Adults are capable of deciding for themselves what they believe is abusive or not. Because LA is built on a platform of cooperation, agreement and mutual respect, staff cannot assume that any behavior is not, in fact, an agreed upon behavior.
For that, we require the player to inform us that something happened and that they believe it is unacceptable.
In addition, staff will not begin investigations on the basis of page, +mail, telephone, telepathy or any means other then +feedback/request. The only exception to this rule is in the case of complaints made against a staff member. In that case, a Formal Complaint may be submitted to the Staff Coordinator directly via @mail in lieu of the feedback system. If the complaint is regarding the Staff Coordinator, it can instead be submitted to two (2) staff members.
A staff member must recuse themselves from any deliberation involving a bit they are responsible for or at the request of the Architect Team.
The Formal Complaint Process
- A player finds themselves at a point where they believe the only action they can take is to file a Formal Complaint.
- That player organizes their thoughts and any corresponding evidence they believe they have and submit a coherent complaint to staff via +feedback/request. From this point on, the submitting player is hereby referred to as 'the Petitioner' and the subject of the complaint is referred to as 'the Respondent'.
- Staff will start its own process and contact the Petitioner within three (3) days to acknowledge the complaint. Once that has happened, the Petitioner may not hear back from staff until the end of the process or they staff may contact them to request additional information or some action. The Petitioner will be informed once a decision has been made, though they may not be informed of the precise details.
The Reasoning Behind the Process
- Staff are party to a lot of complaints- these complaints are often heat of the moment rants that resolve themselves once the involved parties have calmed down. By taking the time to organize one's thoughts and submit them to staff via +feedback/request, it signals to staff that there is a serious, non-temporary complaint.
- Submitting a complaint via +feedback/request begins a process which must, by the nature of the +feedback system, be transparent (where transparent is defined as 'an open process viewable to all participants'). The initial complaint, all resulting communication and the final resolution will follow in this transparency. This allows staff to refine by peer-review its process, procedures and the means by which we communicate with players, so that all of staff continue to grow in its dealings with players.
- The transparency inherent in the process also allows staff to self-monitor and ensures that no single staff member operates in a manner that causes or perpetuates an issue. In addition, it provides some assurance that a single staff member cannot take action against a player without it being reviewed by the rest of staff.
