Sadist Behind the Screen: The 'Internet Troll' Personality

RadishRose

RadishRose

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Location
Connecticut, USA
So what could explain the links between trolling and sadism?

Simply put, some people seem to enjoy being argumentative and purposefully disruptive, according to the researchers. [Understanding the 10 Most Destructive Human Behaviors]

"Both trolls and sadists feel sadistic glee at the distress of others," the researchers, from the University of Manitoba in Canada, wrote in the study. "Sadists just want to have fun … and the Internet is their playground!"

https://www.livescience.com/48128-internet-trolls-sadistic-personalities.html
 

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Being relatively new to 'social media' (as in this site only), I had to look up trolls. My impression of trolls were tricky creatures lurking under bridges! But no - Google says:

"What does it mean to troll someone?

In Internet slang, a troll is someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room, or blog, with the primary intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion."
 
Since I often am on news sites and other social sites, you cannot imagine the number of trolls who respond to many constructive comments made on said sites. They really attempt to create chaos and discord, but fortunately the majority of commenters are hip to this sort of thing and often many have clever rejoinders as comebacks to their destructive statements. But, sometimes there is that one poor soul who is totally withered by the troll and that's when I wield my best angst ridden criticisms of the troll's mental acuity in defense of the poor soul. It usually will die there, but not always, and it becomes my fight which is fine. I generally will win in any case.
 
Your saying trolls get pleasure out of irritating and pissing off
people. Okay, I understand than...

Then you say sadists get pleasure out of harming others.
physically and mentally.
These people that torture others physically and mentally as Hannibal Lector get pleasure from their behavior.
Don't entirely grasp that-why, how, when does it begin.....
 
Lewkat said:
Since I often am on news sites and other social sites, you cannot imagine the number of trolls who respond to many constructive comments made on said sites. They really attempt to create chaos and discord, but fortunately the majority of commenters are hip to this sort of thing and often many have clever rejoinders as comebacks to their destructive statements. But, sometimes there is that one poor soul who is totally withered by the troll and that's when I wield my best angst ridden criticisms of the troll's mental acuity in defense of the poor soul. It usually will die there, but not always, and it becomes my fight which is fine. I generally will win in any case.
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I'm proud of you!
 
I hate when these folks hook someone and the whole thread becomes a back and forth between them. Someone doesn't like what you say fine. Present your view another, clearer way once and then ignore. It would be nice if moderators would delete any further comments from those two, but often they don't or they shut down the comment section altogether. Best thing is to just ignore them.
 
Gardenlover said:
The ignore feature works wonderfully. [Poof] Just like that and he or she is gone.
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I've tried to avoid that, despite the fact that some replies have frustrated me. I don't personally want to write-off folks completely using ignore, because we might have common ground in other topics. Of course, if this 'trolling' is all they do, they would get ignored big-time!
 
I have never used the "ignore" feature, and wouldn't even know how to. If I find someone's posts annoying, I usually just scroll past them without reading them.

One thing I wonder about is: if you use "ignore," what about all the other comments from other people responding to the original poster? If you can still see all of them and their comments, how do you know what they are talking about? Isn't that more annoying than reading the original comment in the first place?
 
Sunny said:
I have never used the "ignore" feature, and wouldn't even know how to. If I find someone's posts annoying, I usually just scroll past them without reading them.

One thing I wonder about is: if you use "ignore," what about all the other comments from other people responding to the original poster? If you can still see all of them and their comments, how do you know what they are talking about? Isn't that more annoying than reading the original comment in the first place?
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The only person I ever put on ignore was someone who was eventually booted from SF.
 
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Sunny said:
I have never used the "ignore" feature, and wouldn't even know how to. If I find someone's posts annoying, I usually just scroll past them without reading them.

One thing I wonder about is: if you use "ignore," what about all the other comments from other people responding to the original poster? If you can still see all of them and their comments, how do you know what they are talking about? Isn't that more annoying than reading the original comment in the first place?
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I learned about that quite a few years ago (different forum, of course). I wasn't familiar with the ignore feature, never used it before. I tried it when an individual was making a nuisance of himself.
However- I've always had the habit of surfing around a forum before actually logging in- to see if anything interesting is there- and what I learned, quite by accident, is ignore only works when you're logged in.. if you're surfing around before logging in, the ignored person's posts are visible. So even if you 'ignore' them, they can be posting all kinds of snarky things about you.
 
StarSong said:
I was thinking the same thing, @Aunt Bea. I've been known to be argumentative and have offered my share of counter points. Does that make me a troll, or merely someone with a different perspective?
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If you are debating, you aren't a troll, IMO. It's personal attacks meant to demean the other person that I believe qualify as trolling, not counterpoints that are on-topic. I suppose it is more 'the spirit' of the posts. Besides, if things start to get dicey, we can opt to take it up in Private Messaging instead of the public forum.
 
Em in Ohio said:
If you are debating, you aren't a troll, IMO. It's personal attacks meant to demean the other person that I believe qualify as trolling, not counterpoints that are on-topic. I suppose it is more 'the spirit' of the posts. Besides, if things start to get dicey, we can opt to take it up in Private Messaging instead of the public forum.
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I agree with you.
 
StarSong said:
I was thinking the same thing, @Aunt Bea. I've been known to be argumentative and have offered my share of counter points. Does that make me a troll, or merely someone with a different perspective?
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IMO it drifts into troll territory when the conversation deteriorates into name-calling or bullying behavior.

I agree with @Judycat try to state your view and move on.

Sometimes I wonder why we all seem to have a burning need to be right on various issues or behaviors.
 
Some forums seem to "protect" the trolls, letting a discussion run a long time before shutting it down. Citydata is one of those.

Why? Well, those kinds of discussions sometimes run into dozens of pages. The more "hits", the more popular the forum looks. Threads about cute kittens don't go on forever; acrimonious threads about controversial subjects do. The "hotter" it gets, the better for the forum.
 
Lewkat said:
A troll is someone who deliberately makes contrary comments during a conversation or commentary in order to inflame others.
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I agree with this.
It is natural, and even a good thing, that we have differing opinions about any thread topic . As long as a person is discussing the topic, that is just conversation, or maybe even debate.
When you can only defend your position by attacking another PERSON, then you are being abusive, and trolling. It means that you have no worthwhile facts or opinions to add to the discussion, so you divert off-topic by attacking the person instead.

As far as why it is called “trolling”, I had trouble with understanding that, too; since I thought of the old fairy tale about the Three Billygoats Gruff, and the trolls under the bridge.

However, fishermen also troll for fish, and this means that they put out bait and then go slowly in the boat, dragging the bait and waiting for a fish to come along and bite.
When you think of it this way, this is actually a lot like what a forum troll does, too.
 
I sort'a understand trolling, but I have to understand the 'why'?
What purpose is archived by intentionally angering another?
Obviously, we do not know, consequently the sitiutation will continue.
I have yet to see what I can define as a 'trolling' post.
I seen 'snits' where two people 'go at it,
but that is not trolling-is it?
 

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