ChatterBank2 mins ago
Psychology of unnecessary rudeness/offensiveness on this site
29 Answers
(I know that this might not fit well in this category however I didn't want to post it in chatterbank.) I try not to get involved when people on this site are nasty for no apparent reason but can anyone suggest a valid reason ie a psychological explanation why people feel the need to be so offensive? I noticed a question earlier which is an example of what I mean. Someone posted a question worried about a lump on her dogs leg. However amid the very helpful replies, someone suggested that the dog should be shot. This is only one example of people being deliberatly immature and nasty and I am sure you have all seen similar posts. Why do people do this and what do they get out of it? Is it too obvious (psychologically) to suggest that it is because we are all essentially anonymous on these sites and therefore people do not behave as they would in a face-to-face social situation?
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Best Answer
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For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.sometimes people find it difficult to socialise online, whether it be a problem with bantering or just thinking of something to type.
These problems can be overcome in some people by lurking and gradually chipping in, then by getting to know people on here they get past their socialisation issues.
Some people never get past it, its often easier to insult people than to say something useful, however these people learn that the negative posts create more attention that is focused soley on them, thus they enter into a cycle of getting attention the only way they know how (by being a troll)
If no one replied to their insults or everyone blanked their posts they would not do it, its like dealing with a tantrum :D
These problems can be overcome in some people by lurking and gradually chipping in, then by getting to know people on here they get past their socialisation issues.
Some people never get past it, its often easier to insult people than to say something useful, however these people learn that the negative posts create more attention that is focused soley on them, thus they enter into a cycle of getting attention the only way they know how (by being a troll)
If no one replied to their insults or everyone blanked their posts they would not do it, its like dealing with a tantrum :D
This is also true, Cazzz. I was a bit of an airhead myself at first - not because I couldn't socialise online, but because I'd had a few drinks - was being spurred on by a number of other people, and to be honest - was just horrible. It seemed amusing at the time though - although I'm the first to hold my hands up and say I was wrong. Perhaps what I mean is, that just because there's some "stupid" or funny reply to a sensible question, it might not mean that the person replying's being deliberately nasty. We all have mood changes, and I don't believe there's a person living who hasn't perhaps said something they've regretted later - x
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I think that what is also forgotten (by the *nasty* posters) is the fact that behind these pixels and nicknames, there are real human beings with feelings and emotions. I am sure that if the same conversations were taking place face-to-face, most of the nastiness we see here simply would not occur.
I made the mistake once of treating a question as a joke and replied accordingly (not nasty just in jest) but the questioner was for real..... I rapidly apologised but just wished I'd sat on my hands.
I made the mistake once of treating a question as a joke and replied accordingly (not nasty just in jest) but the questioner was for real..... I rapidly apologised but just wished I'd sat on my hands.
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If someone launches an unprovoked insult of me in a thread, I dont feel upset because I know that the person with the "issues" is not me.
When Blu3wave insults everyone under the sun she makes herself look like an idiot, not the people she is insulting, But she gets the attention she needs by being offensive, In the end its her I feel sorry for...
When Blu3wave insults everyone under the sun she makes herself look like an idiot, not the people she is insulting, But she gets the attention she needs by being offensive, In the end its her I feel sorry for...
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