Science reveals what makes trolls so nasty

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Science reveals what makes trolls so nasty

Public Safety



(Courtesy Erin Buckels)

By Justin Jouvenal July 21 at 7:00 AM 

Why do trolls troll?

Anyone who has spent time on the Web has probably wondered in exasperation what motivates people to spew venom and wreak havoc in seemingly every forum and comment section. Science has begun to provide a few answers.

A 2014 University of Manitoba study was the first to attempt to create a personality profile of trolls. Researchers surveyed hundreds of Internet users and gave them personality tests.

Most respondents said they liked to do benign things online, such as chatting and debating issues, but 5.6 percent reported that they enjoyed trolling. The personality tests for this group were striking.

{‘Reign of terror’: An online troll destroys a family’s offline life}

People who enjoyed trolling had much higher rates of dark traits such as sadism, narcissism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism — so much so that “it might be said that online trolls are prototypical everyday sadists,” the authors concluded.

[Myrina]

1. Pretty much describes the Tea Party, in a nutshell.

n.t

[Cosmic Kitten]

2. In related news:

Science reveals what makes
right-wing authoritarians so nasty

[sarisataka]

3. I thought it was

They get irritable living under a damp smelly bridge

[Uncle Joe]

4. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, mahatmakanejeeves.

[murielm99]

5. Some get paid for it. n/t

[Octafish]

6. Nailed it.

Thanks for ticking off the right people.

[foo_bar]

7. but these 5.6% are self-identified trolls

Not that there's a consensus definition of trolls/trolling, but I tend to think the biggest trolls don't know they're trolling. Whereas these respondents did, so maybe they were trolling the survey with "dark" stuff for lulz. Which makes them trolls in some sense, but maybe they're more like aspirational sadists (or people like me who troll personality surveys.)