Support NeoGAF

[wildfire]

I'm tempted to buy this research paper for $36

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886914000324


http://www.slate.com/articles/healt...sm_psychopathy.html?google_editors_picks=true

The research, conducted by Erin Buckels of the University of Manitoba and two colleagues, sought to directly investigate whether people who engage in trolling are characterized by personality traits that fall in the so-called Dark Tetrad: 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).

The researchers conducted multiple studies, using samples from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk but also of college students, to try to understand why the act of trolling seems to attract this type of personality. They even constructed their own survey instrument, which they dubbed the Global Assessment of Internet Trolling, or GAIT, containing the following 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 other players in multiplayer games.
  
• The more beautiful and pure a thing is, the more satisfying it is to corrupt.

Yes, some people actually say they agree with such statements. And again, doing so was correlated with sadism in its various forms, with psychopathy, and with Machiavellianism. Overall, the authors found that the relationship between sadism and trolling was the strongest, and that indeed, sadists appear to troll because they find it pleasurable.

Personally I have been having a suspicion about trolls being sadistic and I have observed many lack empathy, but I have a hard time calling them sociopaths, for now.

 

[xbhaskarx]

Narcissistic Machiavellian here

 

[Camp Lo]

Saw this on TYT yesterday, pretty much confirmed the obvious.

 

[wildfire]

Saw this on TYT yesterday, pretty much confirmed the obvious.

Does it really? These are some very specific terms we are talking about and some of them mean they should be medicated, committed or addressed in another way.

 

[Dai101]

 

[Vulcano's assistant]

And they are all in that twitch tv channel right now.

 

[sinxtanx]

Well, trollig is they're art ford.

Uo cant go in half-an-half

 

[Devolution]

I'm guessing they're talking about malicious trolling only as is the OP?

 

[Mistel]

Twitch playing pokemon would be a perfect thing to analyse for this.

 

[Sinfamy]

I saw The Young Turks reporting on this.
Then I went on 4chan and saw all the butthurt 12 year olds attacking the video and hosts, calling then child molestors and reporting all their YouTube videos; proving the exact point of said study.

 

[Rayis]

That explains 4chan pretty damn well

(inb4 not all of 4chan is like that something I'm very well aware of as I browse it often but people can't deny the site has some truly pieces of shit)

 

[CadetMahoney]

I thought Sadism was more to do with physical stuff.

Isn't the appropriate word they want Schadenfreude

 

[Ramblin]

Sounds about right.

 

[Deleted member 13876]

I'm tempted to buy this research paper for $36

I'm sure interested in an expert opinion on this.

 

[HalfBakedProphet]

The more beautiful and pure a thing is, the more satisfying it is to corrupt

holy shit. This explains so much about trolls in general

 

[Fenderputty]

Only trolls ate narcissistic ... Hmm.

 

[kirblar]

Sounds about right. It's one thing to screw with your friends for fun. It's another to do it to complete strangers.

 

[Suite Pee]

I skimmed through it using my university's journal privileges. When I saw the question about "doing it for the lulz" I lost my shit. I think it would have been more appropriate to stick to more professional phrasing there.

 

[GraveHorizon]

That's just what the trolls want you to think. In reality, they're all mature, intelligent, sensitive and responsible individuals with a heart of gold just looking for a good laugh.

 

[mugurumakensei]

So, the only people as a group who aren't psychopaths are people who don't talk on the internet.

 

[HalfBakedProphet]

You'll often see trolls pretend fall back on the whole "I'm a good person in real life" excuse too, like they can be this totally different person on the internet with zero mental repercussions in real life. This shit either bleeds over into real life or is showing who they really are underneath

 

[Kai Dracon]

It has been said before that people who internet troll in a compulsive manner show signs of infantile histrionic personality disorder. The internet is the perfect place for such folks. You can spread yourself around, the idea that your online comments are seen by a huge audience and center the attention on you.

I'd guess that a lot of trolls have very low self-esteem combined with histrionic behavior, which turns into a kind of twisted projection: aggressively attacking and belittling others to raise one's self up, while grandstanding in the process to hog the spotlight.

 

[Deleted member 13876]

I skimmed through it using my university's journal privileges. When I saw the question about "doing it for the lulz" I lost my shit. I think it would have been more appropriate to stick to more professional phrasing there.

Probably sampling actual quotes but yeah, fuck that word.

 

[wildfire]

I thought Sadism was more to do with physical stuff.

Isn't the appropriate word they want Schadenfreude

The point is sadists will deliberately inflict pain to get their jollies. Schadenfreude requires you to be an observer and not an agent of the mishap.

 

[commedieu]

i just like to post "Amir0x Sucks" on any youtube video I come across. Like most people.

 

[jay]

Is making sarcastic comments that people assume are serious the same as trolling?

 

[Dash_]

Lol. I am shocked.

 

[teruterubozu]

It's the ultimate academic troll. I hope they got lots of funding for this study.

 

[Tesseract]

i corpse camped a dude for 3 hours in wow.

 

[Brian Fellows]

I've been called a psychopath a few times on Neogaf and I'm definitely narcissistic. I guess the shoe fits.

 

[plagiarize]

Is making sarcastic comments that people assume are serious the same as trolling?

no it wouldn't be, because it's all about intent. I presume the 'favourite activity when posting online' is self determined. So, to be completely correct, it isn't people who troll that have these traits, but people for who trolling is their *favorite* online communication.

that isn't really surprising at all.

 

[mrmisterwaa]

I enjoy griefing other players in multiplayer games.

Sorry but this sounds like a person who sucks at PVP and thinks that it's trolling.

 

[SquiddyCracker]

Trolling is an artform science cannot yet understand.

On the otherhand...

 

[thefit]

Nah...

 

[Jenov]

I believe it. My bro used to backstab in sc2 just for kicks. I can understand doing it for the novelty a few times, but he backstabbed for thousands of games... It was a sick obsession of his to see the other players anger/pain/surprise, and he thoroughly enjoyed doing it. He did the same thing in d2 by learning how to scam players, and that also became his fun. He was diagnosed as narcissistic and manipulative, but I think the psychologist shied from the psychopathic label (but he probably is that too).

 

[RELAYER]

i just like to post "Amir0x Sucks" on any youtube video I come across. Like most people.

You and I both know that isn't the real version.

 

[Mistel]

On the otherhand...

I laughed when that happened, the anguish and suffering was just divine.

 

[Famassu]

Does it really? These are some very specific terms we are talking about and some of them mean they should be medicated, committed or addressed in another way.

And why shouldn't they? I mean, really, if someone acted like a lot of the trolls act online but in real life, people would definitely think they have some kind of mental problems and should seek help. Why is it that just because it is done in the Internet then it's not a "real problem" that should be treated?

 

[Trent Strong]

Is making sarcastic comments that people assume are serious the same as trolling?

I don't think so. The word troll gets thrown around way too much these days.

 

[Massive Duck. C.M.]

Does it really? These are some very specific terms we are talking about and some of them mean they should be medicated, committed or addressed in another way.

Yep

Lots of people need LOTS of help

 

[RustyNails]

Incognito, I never took you for machiavelian

 

[Next]

and this was based on online questions right?

 

[Timedog]

Somebody needs to do something about all these trolls. What a menace.

 

[Devolution]

How do we know the people doing the study weren't trolled themselves?

Somebody needs to do something about all these trolls. What a menace.

 

[Napoleonthechimp]

No shit.

Do internet trolls exhibit the following traits:

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).

Of course they damn well do. We wouldn't categorise them as such if they didn't.

 

[Timedog]

I'm gonna make sure every single one of these trolls are, let's just say, "relinquished from duty", even if I have to do it myself.

 

[BPoole]

I think there are definitely varying degrees of trolling that should be taken into consideration. I think it is a bit dangerous for these types of studies to say, "If you've trolled on the internet, you're psychopathic, narcissistic, etc" since that will cause people to label themselves as such things. there's definitely a difference between going on a Xbox forum and talking trash about the Xbox and creating a fake ad like this and sharing it around the internet:

 

[Wilsongt]

Title deserves SHOCKING STUDY.

 

[commedieu]

You and I both know that isn't the real version.

**continues**

 

[CornBurrito]

You'll often see trolls pretend fall back on the whole "I'm a good person in real life" excuse too, like they can be this totally different person on the internet with zero mental repercussions in real life. This shit either bleeds over into real life or is showing who they really are underneath

Why can't they have two different selves? Why does it have to be their internet self is their true self?