I’ve said this in another comment here, but I see a lot of folks debating about the utility of a dislike button in terms of its improvement on recommendations, and I think that misses the point.
If enough users want the button, that seems like a good enough reason to have it, even if they don’t use it. They may enjoy having the ability to express their opinion, which is an entirely separate derived benefit from such a button’s influence on their recommendations.
It might even be a bit like the “Close door” button on an elevator. Sure, it’s rumored not to even do anything in some cases, but it’s widely available anyway because users appreciate feeling like they have agency over their circumstances (even if that feeling is built on a lie).
If enough users want the button, that seems like a good enough reason to have it, even if they don’t use it. They may enjoy having the ability to express their opinion, which is an entirely separate derived benefit from such a button’s influence on their recommendations.
It might even be a bit like the “Close door” button on an elevator. Sure, it’s rumored not to even do anything in some cases, but it’s widely available anyway because users appreciate feeling like they have agency over their circumstances (even if that feeling is built on a lie).