Polymorphic Feed Item Rendering

A feed schema that only supports a single activity type (post) cannot evolve to include likes, comments, follows, or shares without a full schema migration. When type support is added ad-hoc through if/else chains in the renderer, each new type adds a branch, tests, and cognitive overhead — the component becomes a maintenance liability under ISO 25010:2011. More concretely, the absence of a type discriminator on the Activity model means you cannot query or filter by activity type, which blocks every notification and analytics feature that depends on distinguishing activity kinds.

Add a type discriminator field to your activity or post schema, then replace branching renderer logic with a component factory in components/feed/ActivityRenderer.tsx.

// Prisma schema
model Activity {
  id        String   @id @default(cuid())
  type      String   // 'post' | 'like' | 'comment' | 'follow'
  userId    String
  targetId  String?
  content   String?
  createdAt DateTime @default(now())
  user      User     @relation(fields: [userId], references: [id])
}

// components/feed/ActivityRenderer.tsx
const renderers: Record<string, React.FC<{ activity: Activity }>> = {
  post: PostActivity,
  like: LikeActivity,
  comment: CommentActivity,
  follow: FollowActivity
}

export function ActivityRenderer({ activity }: { activity: Activity }) {
  const Component = renderers[activity.type]
  return Component ? <Component activity={activity} /> : null
}

This pattern lets you add new activity types by registering a new entry in renderers without touching the router or switch logic.

• ID: community-social-engagement.activity-feeds.polymorphic-feed-items

• Severity: medium

• What to look for: Enumerate all relevant files and Examine feed components and the Post/Activity schema. Check for support of multiple activity types: posts, comments, likes, shares, follows, reactions, etc. Look for either: (a) a type discriminator field (e.g., activity_type, kind), (b) a component factory pattern that routes render logic, or (c) a schema with different tables per activity type. Verify the component avoids excessive if statements for each type.

• Pass criteria: At least 1 implementation must be present. Multiple activity types are supported by the schema (evidenced by a type field, separate tables, or extensible design). Components use a factory or discriminator pattern to render different activity types cleanly.

• Fail criteria: Only one activity type (posts) is supported, or the rendering component is a giant if/else block with hardcoded logic for each type.

• Skip (N/A) when: Feed only shows posts (single activity type).

• Detail on fail: "Post table has no type field; feed only supports post activities" or "FeedItem component has 20+ if/else branches for different activity types"

• Remediation: Use a polymorphic schema and factory component:

  // Prisma schema
  model Activity {
    id String @id
    type String // 'post', 'like', 'comment', 'follow'
    userId String
    targetId String? // Post ID if type is 'like'/'comment'
    content String?
    createdAt DateTime
    user User @relation(fields: [userId], references: [id])
  }
  
  // Component factory
  function ActivityRenderer({ activity }) {
    switch (activity.type) {
      case 'post':
        return <PostActivity activity={activity} />
      case 'like':
        return <LikeActivity activity={activity} />
      case 'comment':
        return <CommentActivity activity={activity} />
      default:
        return null
    }
  }