Advertisement

Internet trolls are 'everyday sadists', Canadian researchers conclude

Psychological survey shows people sending out online vitriol gain real emotional benefit from causing or simply observing others' suffering

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Trolls gleefully send out their "e-bile" using smartphone apps, online comments, texts or social media sites for no other reason than cruelty. Photo: Reuters

Anyone who's ever encountered internet trolls - vile, racist, sexist and often profane people who delight in other people's misery - might have concluded that they are psychologically disturbed.

Advertisement

That would be correct, new research suggests. Trolls gleefully send out their "e-bile" using smartphone apps, online comments, texts or social media sites for no other reason than cruelty.

Darla Jaye
Darla Jaye
"It happens every night," says Darla Jaye, a radio talk show host in Kansas City, in the United States, whose conservative views often serve as a lightning rod for trolls.

"I get stuff on the text line all the time, where people swear at me and call me the foulest names ... It's easy to throw something out there when you're anonymous. That is the thing about the internet, especially about trolls. Most of these people are cowards."

People call me the foulest names by text on the net. Most are cowards
DARLA JAYE, A RADIO TALK SHOW HOST

However, a recent paper by a team of Canadian researchers, who have looked into the psychological underpinnings of trolls, suggests the trolls may be something else as well - sadists.

Advertisement
loading
Advertisement