Internet Trolls Are Actually Sadists, Study Finds

matou

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Hopefully, this scientific finding will lead to some more criminal charges.

Canadian psychologists Erin Buckels, Paul Trapnell, and Delroy Paulhus set up a survey of personality inventories matched with “Internet commenting styles”—in other words, they attempted to psychoanalyze commenters, which should be cause for a Nobel prize (and hazard pay) in itself. What came from the study will likely surprise no one: people who like to troll are also likely to show signs of “sadism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism.”

Those three character flaws make up the ominous “Dark Tetrad of personality.” Sadism means delighting in the harm of others, psychopathy is an antisocial personality disorder, and Machiavellianism means a person’s tendency to be unemotional and deceitful. Trolls seem to have all three on lock.




Read more: Internet Trolls Are Sadists and Psychopaths, Psychologist Report Finds | TIME.com http://newsfeed.time.com/2014/02/13/internet-trolls-are-actually-sadists-study-finds/#ixzz2tS9SaUuB
 
But the intriguing thing about this new study by researchers from University of Manitoba, University of Winnipeg and University of British Columbia is the idea that trolling behavior springs not from the opportunity provided by the Internet, but from innate characteristics people possess both online and off.
That bodes poorly for efforts to tame the trolls. It also suggests, somewhat ominously, that there are lots of “everyday sadists among us.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...-according-to-new-paper/?tid=pm_lifestyle_pop
 
I troll the web to find the sadist, and bring them to justice.
 
I think I helped to send one troll to jail over Christmas 2012 LOL!
 
Very interesting study...

The findings make so much sense...

JMO
 
I believe it. They do seem like sadists when I really horrible comments that are out there on the internet.
 
it's been my experience that many of these trolls might be sadistic but are that way online because their spouse or "mommy" won't let them be in real life.
 
I'm not 100% sure but I think Luka magnotta started off trolling and then began videotaping himself harming animals to upset an animal rights group. He then progressed to killing at least one human victim. Clearly he was disturbed with or without any trolling activities.
 
There is no mention of any scientific theory or hypothesis being proven or disproved. Without site records, these analyzers could have been analyzing the same 10 people over and over. If this was a scientifically sound, reproducible study, proving a groundbreaking hypothesis, it would be published in a science magazine or journal. Time is a human interest, political, lifestyle rag. No self-respecting psychologist or psychiatrist would diagnose someone they have never met.
 
I rarely post in news sites and forums that aren't modded simply out of disgust at what some people put online.
Appreciate WS and its' moderators !!

HAVE A HAPPY AND SAFE THANKSGIVING, EVERYONE !!! :)
 
I troll the web to find the sadist, and bring them to justice.

I think I helped to send one troll to jail over Christmas 2012 LOL!

That's awesome!! :loveyou:

It was a proud moment.

I'm not 100% sure but I think Luka magnotta started off trolling and then began videotaping himself harming animals to upset an animal rights group. He then progressed to killing at least one human victim. Clearly he was disturbed with or without any trolling activities.

He he he. Ahh hello soul sisters. Surely trolls are the best entertainment value on teh interwebz. Sadly, WS is no longer immune to them, despite Mods' best efforts. I can smell their stench from miles away after being on FB during Luka Magnotta and his multitude of sock puppets' reign of terror. The authorities were warned about his potential for violence toward humans and his psychopathy by animal advocates/rights' activists long before he killed his partner but chose to brush those concerns off. It was one of the biggest mistakes they ever made and cost an innocent human's and animals' lives.
 
There is no mention of any scientific theory or hypothesis being proven or disproved. Without site records, these analyzers could have been analyzing the same 10 people over and over. If this was a scientifically sound, reproducible study, proving a groundbreaking hypothesis, it would be published in a science magazine or journal. Time is a human interest, political, lifestyle rag. No self-respecting psychologist or psychiatrist would diagnose someone they have never met.

researchers from University of Manitoba, University of Winnipeg and University of British Columbia...

...published last week in the journal Personality and Individual Differences.

I guess there is more information in that journal.
 

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