on 21-02-2014 07:18 PM
I found this while I was browsing the news and thought it a good supplement to the faun's thread about trolls and snitches...
Internet trolls who start arguments and make inflammatory remarks to provoke responses online have, unsurprisingly, been found to be psychopaths in real life too.
The latest trolling study from the University of Manitoba in Canada involved two surveys that showed people who troll tend to be sadists or psychopaths.
"Trolling correlated positively with sadism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism, using both enjoyment ratings and identity scores," wrote study author Erin Buckels in the journal Personality and Individual Differences.
The researchers found sadism, which is the tendency to derive pleasure from causing others pain or humiliation, was the trat most commonly associated with internet trolling.
Dr Brent Coker, a University of Melbourne online consumer psychologist, told ninemsn that trolls are like the Joker in the Batman movies.
"Their motives are similar – it's somebody who prefers to remain anonymous and they ridicule other people for their own humour," he said.
"People who engage in trolling behaviour are not usually normal in terms of their personality and have inbuilt sadistic traits."
Dr Coker said the internet has provided a forum for these people to derive pleasure, but it's difficult to know whether cyberspace has caused more sadists, or whether the sadists have always been there, but acting in less obvious ways.
"Prior to the internet, they would have done things like malicious gossip –spreading horrible rumours or horrible secrets about other people behind their backs with the intent of causing damage against other people for their own enjoyment," he said.
"Usually human beings feel bad when hurting other people. Sadists don't have that – they don't feel remorse or guilt when they hurt other people. They actually get enormous personal satisfaction and enjoyment from what they do."
Comedians Roy and HG are currently under attack online for their shows about the Sochi Winter Olympics.
"I don't know how they keep so upbeat and happy when they are copping those comments," Dr Coker said.
Scottish speed skater Elise Christie said she almost pulled out of the Sochi games after copping online abuse following a collision last week.
The Australian swimming team blamed their poor performance at the London Olympics on too much time spent on social media, which exposed them to trolls who distracted them and shook their confidence.
People take way too much notice of what perfect faceless strangers type up to them.
on 25-02-2014 06:00 PM - last edited on 26-02-2014 12:21 PM by luna-2304
I was just reading this and thought something similar had been posted recently .
Research suggests Internet 'trolls' are spurred to online meanness by real-life sadism
There is now scientific evidence that Internet trolls are indeed just as mean in their private lives as they are in their digital ones, and it appears the driving force behind their trolling is good old-fashion sadism.
on 25-02-2014 06:43 PM
So. Why are you here posting?
I like reading others viewpoints on a variety of topics, disagreeing with some, smiling at some posts, laughing out loud at others. Some I post to, a lot I don't. Don't care if no one agrees with me. Will kudo posts I agree with or like.
Back to you.
on 25-02-2014 06:56 PM
@nevynreally wrote:So. Why are you here posting?
I like reading others viewpoints on a variety of topics, disagreeing with some, smiling at some posts, laughing out loud at others. Some I post to, a lot I don't. Don't care if no one agrees with me. Will kudo posts I agree with or like.
Back to you.
I find myself agreeing with a lot of your comments lately :D:D
I think most people post and read for the same reasons as you have given.
on 25-02-2014 06:59 PM
on 25-02-2014 07:17 PM
i gave freaki a kudos so it was all 2's
dont anyone change it!!
25-02-2014 07:20 PM - edited 25-02-2014 07:22 PM
@icyfroth wrote:
People take way too much notice of what perfect faceless strangers type up to them.
I reckon some of this comes down to a case of people not knowing how to deal with adversity.
Being the butt of what somebody else sees as a joke is not always fun but its also not always done with malicious intent.
Learning to shrug things off and not see everything as an attack is a must if one is going to go online, or even venture outside their front door.
Often someone who sees teasing as fun is not necessarily a sadist, they just have a different sense of humour.
on 25-02-2014 07:21 PM
on 25-02-2014 07:22 PM
i often get told that Im fun to pick on. People seem to do it so well 😄
on 25-02-2014 07:23 PM