SADISTS, PSYCHOPATHS FIND NEW HOME ONLINE
Trolls' antisocial behaviors forcing companies to eliminate popular feature
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A recent study suggests that Internet trolls could be the same type of people who, before the Internet age, would have taken their aggression out in a way that is physically violent and harmful to others.
“In Internet slang, a troll is a person who sows discord on the Internet by starting arguments or upsetting people, by posting inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community … either accidentally or with the deliberate intent of provoking readers into an emotional response,” explains Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia that has had to battle its own trolls.
This month’s issue of Personality and Individual Differences published the results of the “Trolls Just Want to Have Fun” study in which more than 1,200 people participated. The study tested the personality traits of Internet trolls and compared them to the population at large.
Researchers Erin E. Buckels, Paul D. Trapnell and Delroy L. Paulhus of the University of Manitoba made up the team that conducted the study. They wanted to determine whether or not those who troll have common “noxious” personality traits and, specifically, whether they fit into the “Dark Tetrad” – the Machiavellian personality combination that is found to lead to antisocial behaviors such as psychosis, narcissism, sadism and psychopathy.
Machiavellianism (willingness to manipulate and deceive others), narcissism (egotism and self-obsession), psychopathy (the lack of remorse and empathy) and sadism (pleasure in the suffering of others) were the measured traits that theorists believe define the “Dark Tetrad.”
The researchers identified “trolls” by asking a series of questions to find what activity they enjoy the most when they are online. They were then given options like “chatting with others,” “debating issues that are important,” “making new friends,” “trolling others” and a general “other.”
Trolls self-identified as those who like “trolling others” online better than other Internet activities.
The study found that trolls enjoy the sheer disruption of injecting their grief into other peoples’ discussions for the sadistic pleasure (or “lulz” in Internet slang) of it. Trolls were given a composite score that researchers named the Global Assessment of Internet Trolling, or GAIT, based on their responses to these four items:
“I have sent people to shock websites for the lulz.”
“I like to troll people in forums or the comments section of websites.”
“I enjoy griefing [annoying] other players in multiplayer games .”
“The more beautiful and pure a thing is, the more satisfying it is to corrupt.”
The research found that the higher the participant’s GAIT score, the more likely they were to identify with all four areas of the “Dark Tetrad,” but most strongly, sadism.
Some sadists find an outlet on the Internet since the behavior is considered socially unacceptable in other arenas. Thus, the disease model feeds itself as the only acceptable place to conduct covert activity and, simultaneously, the Pavlovian rush is addictive for the sadistic troll – especially when they elicit a response from a reader.
The problem of trolls has become a major issue for sites that are forced to hire full-time monitors to sift through the trolls’ injections. Trolls often take much joy in disruption have found ways to overwhelm even the savviest of websites.
Sadism is considered a common criminal trait, particularly in those who cause bodily harm to others, like sexual offenders and serial killers. So the implications are intriguing to researchers. They ask: If those with sadistic tendencies can get their satisfaction via internet cruelty, might they be less likely to act out socially?
Participants in the study admitted not only to sadistic activity, such as sending people to shocking sites or upsetting the flow, they admitted that the more pure and beautiful something is (such as a site dedicated to an inspiring story about a child), the more satisfaction they get from corrupting it – which is also considered a common thinking pattern among child rapists and murderers.
Participants also disclosed another point: They would rather act out and get their sadistic satisfaction on the Internet, where they get in less trouble for it than they would if they did so publicly.
Violent crime rates are down in the U.S. for the fifth straight year. Some wonder if that trend could be a result of those with the “Dark Tetrad” personality having a new, effective outlet in their online activities.
The activities of the trolls are not always harmless, even when they are anonymous. Suicides and other emotional traumas have been linked to trolls, especially in situations involving already emotionally vulnerable bloggers or commenters.
Most abusers online are males, and most of those trolled are female.
Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2014/09/sadists-psychopaths-find-new-home-online/#xO1e1UYfARTfg7Qq.99
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