@Cleoriff 

It’s supposed to help people identify good quality posts, but clearly it’s never going to be a perfect feedback mechanism. With some forums it’s even possible to give negative feedback (e.g. a star rating system), but you can imagine the inevitable abuse that occurs whenever there’s any disagreement between community members. 

But it’s a difficult balance to strike, when community activity is dwindling, and it seems like  people need some form of validation for their contributions, so that they’re always motivated to keep posting.