You can tell when an internet troll has been smashing away at the keyboard – the page has an unmistakable hiss..
Some remarkable research has turned the spotlight to the trolls to see what lies under their skin.
As in any group, the sickest or most unhealthy person holds a lot of power. Internet trolls are no different. They polarise discussion and solidify opinions one way or another.
Their words are steeped in stingy intent and designed to stoke trouble in innocent and potentially informative conversations.
[bctt tweet=”Remarkable research has turned the spotlight to internet trolls to see what lies under their skin.”]
So what sort of person is a troll?
Research has found what we all suspected – they’re awful people. Awful. The type we would run far away from if we could, well out of their reach, but with enough of a view to see what it looks like when karma finally does it’s job.
Researchers looked at the personality profiles and internet commenting styles of 1215 people.
What they found was that trolls rated highly on the following four measures:
- sadism (finding pleasure in others’ pain);
- narcissism (selfish, self-centred, lacking in empathy, craving attention);
- psychopathy (antisocial, lacking in empathy and remorse)
- Machiavellianism (deceptive and manipulative)
Of all the personality measures, sadism had the strongest association with trolling. As explained by the researchers, ‘cyber-trolling appears to be an internet manifestation of everyday sadism.’
The behavior of trolls speaks eloquently of their dysfunction and their end goal of making those within reach of them miserable. The very nature of their personality means that the more attention they are given, the more they will exploit the opportunity to impart misery in full public view.
They cannot be ‘talked into’ being better people.
Although this research specifically examined cyber bullies, I can’t see how the findings would be any different for bullies in the real world.
The only way to deal with an internet troll is to hit the delete button. They believe that attention is their birthright so don’t give it. Walk away and hold on tightly to that delicious bundle of power that could have been theirs.
If you are quiet enough when walk, you’ll hear them groaning in pain at the loss.
[irp posts=”793″ name=”Toxic People: 12 Things They Do and How to Deal with Them”]
![It’s the simple things that are everything. We know play, conversation, micro-connections, predictability, and having a responsive reliable relationship with at least one loving adult, can make the most profound difference in buffering and absorbing the sharp edges of the world. Not all children will get this at home. Many are receiving it from childcare or school. It all matters - so much.
But simple isn’t always easy.
Even for children from safe, loving, homes with engaged, loving parent/s there is so much now that can swallow our kids whole if we let it - the unsafe corners of the internet; screen time that intrudes on play, connection, stillness, sleep, and joy; social media that force feeds unsafe ideas of ‘normal’, and algorithms that hijack the way they see the world.
They don’t need us to be perfect. They just need us to be enough. Enough to balance what they’re getting fed when they aren’t with us. Enough talking to them, playing with them, laughing with them, noticing them, enjoying them, loving and leading them. Not all the time. Just enough of the time.
But first, we might have to actively protect the time when screens, social media, and the internet are out of their reach. Sometimes we’ll need to do this even when they fight hard against it.
We don’t need them to agree with us. We just need to hear their anger or upset when we change what they’ve become used to. ‘I know you don’t want this and I know you’re angry at me for reducing your screen time. And it’s happening. You can be annoyed, and we’re still [putting phones and iPads in the basket from 5pm] (or whatever your new rules are).’♥️](https://www.heysigmund.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png)
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