Internet trolls: Narcissistic, Machiavellian, psychopathic, and sadistic

[noisycheese]

Food for thought...

Internet Trolls Really Are Horrible People

Narcissistic, Machiavellian, psychopathic, and sadistic

By Chris Mooney

In the past few years, the science of Internet trollology has made some strides. Last year, for instance, we learned that by hurling insults and inciting discord in online comment sections, so-called Internet trolls (who are frequently anonymous) have a polarizing effect on audiences, leading to politicization, rather than deeper understanding of scientific topics.

That’s bad, but it’s nothing compared with what a new psychology paper has to say about the personalities of trolls themselves. 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)...

Read the rest of the essay here: http://www.slate.com/articles/healt..._machiavellianism_narcissism_psychopathy.html

 

[hepcat]

I doubt that's any big news to anyone who's spent any time on an internet forum.

Now I'm off to grief and troll. The internet is my playground.

 

[David Hughes]

Hmmmm, it says "Machiavellianism (willingness to manipulate and deceive others)" and that makes me wonder where someone got that idea from.

Regards, David