Does the instance a user is on (visible after their username) affect how they are perceived, either positively or negatively, by you or others?
Does the instance a user is on (visible after their username) affect how they are perceived, either positively or negatively, by you or others?
Instances over time coalesce into certain ideological stances, a curious aspect of federation it seems. This absolutely has an impact on interaction.
On the other hand, some have explicit ideological positions or themes (e.g. lemmygrad.ml, slrpnk.net) and others are shaped by moderation (.ml taking a hard stance against the sinophobia normal in mainatream media, .world and a few other instances/staff banning comments making light of violence e.g. luigi)
This accelerates that process, for sure! I am more talking about how long-term, users tend to form more similar views. If you join an instance and another better fits your views, users tend to jump ship.