definition of scoring function Score functions are used in the evaluation of probabilistic forecasts. The question: is the score function positive oriented or negative oriented?
For example, in the paper Strictly Proper Scoring Rules, Prediction, and Estimation it says that $S(Q,Q) \geq S(P,Q)$ for any distributions $P$ and $Q$,
Conversely, in the paper Predictive Model Assessment for Count Data it is the opposite, i.e. $S(Q,Q) \leq S(P,Q)$ for any distributions $P$ and $Q$.
What is the most common way to define a score?

Both "positively oriented" and "negatively oriented" scoring rules are common in the literature. Better papers explicitly note which convention they use.
Unfortunately, not everyone knows about the two common conventions. So people who think "their" convention is the "normal" one will not note which convention they are following - since after all, they can't imagine it not being shared by everyone. In such cases, you need to learn from the context which convention is being followed.
