Wikipedia widow

(English) This is an essay. It expresses the opinions and ideas of some Wikimedians but may not have wide support. This is not policy on Meta, but it may be a policy or guideline on other Wikimedia projects. Feel free to update this page as needed, or use the discussion page to propose major changes.

A Wikipedia widow is the spouse of a Wikipedian who has neglected his or her spouse duties in some significant way thus causing the spouse to feel widowed in a metaphorical sense. The Wikipedian in no way intended for this to happen but it just crept up and took over. There is a probably branch of behavioral science about to emerge to address all of this but it does not yet appear in the scientific literature.

Some of the more obvious symptoms of this condition are:

1. Staying up later than usual at night at the computer.
2. A check of yesterday's history shows an inordinate amount of WP activity.
3. A glazed appearance during the evening when you ask a typical question.
4. An unusual number of questions on obscure subjects coming from the spouse.
5. An unusual intolerance to your inability to answer obscure questions.
6. Frequent references to other Wikipedians by their nicknames.
7. An absurd adherence to one side or another at VfD.
8. Dinner preparation shifts from the Wikipedian to the widow.
9. Curt responses to attempts at romantic conversation.

Wikipedian widows are related, but not similar to, Wikispinsters.