ratingsfrom

Ratingsfrom is a label used in data models and APIs to indicate the origin or source of a rating value. It is typically a string or identifier that distinguishes whether a given rating was provided by a human user, by an automated system, by an external partner, or by an aggregation process. In practice, ratingsfrom complements fields such as value and timestamp to provide provenance for each rating.

In common data schemas, ratingsfrom is stored as a separate field within a Rating object. Depending on the system, it may be a simple enumerated value like "user", "system", or "external", or it may reference a source entity, such as a user ID or partner ID. The field can be mandatory in some schemas and optional in others. Some implementations allow multiple sources per rating or a hierarchy of sources to support complex provenance.

Usage of ratingsfrom supports weighted analytics, auditing, and filtering by provenance. It helps with trust and governance decisions in marketplaces, review aggregators, and recommender systems. When multiple sources are combined, ratingsfrom helps explain differences in ratings and enables source-specific normalization or correction.

Examples: In JSON, a rating could be { "value": 4.5, "ratingsfrom": "user" } or { "value": 4.2, "ratingsfrom": "external_partner_xyz" }. In SQL, ratingsfrom could be represented as a foreign key to a Sources table.

Related concepts include source, provenance, data lineage, and rating provenance.