Difference between revisions of "Internet Trolling"

Revision as of 23:48, 10 February 2023

Internet trolling refers to the act of intentionally posting inflammatory, off-topic, or otherwise disruptive messages in online forums, discussion boards, or social media platforms with the primary intent of causing chaos or inciting a reaction from other users. Trolling can take many forms, including but not limited to: flaming, baiting, and gaslighting. Trolling is often done for the purpose of getting a reaction or attention, and not necessarily to contribute to the conversation or discussion at hand. A Pew Research Center survey published two years ago found that 70% of 18-to-24-year-olds who use the Internet had experienced harassment, and 26% of women that age said they’d been stalked online ^[1] Trolling can occur on a variety of online platforms, including forums, social media sites, and video games. It is often characterized by the use of anonymity, with trolls often using fake identities or pseudonyms to avoid being held accountable for their actions. It can have consequences for the individuals targeted by the behavior and for the wider online community, and it can contribute to a toxic online environment that makes it harder for individuals to feel secure and confident in sharing their opinions and ideas.

Terminologies in Trolling

Flaming

Flaming is a type of online behavior that involves the use of excessively hostile or inflammatory language, often with the intention of provoking a reaction or starting a conflict. Flaming can take many different forms, including personal attacks, name-calling, and the use of offensive language. In some cases, flaming can escalate into more serious forms of online harassment and abuse, such as cyberbullying or hate speech. ^[2]

Gaslighting

In the context of internet trolling, gaslighting refers to a tactic in which a person deliberately tries to manipulate another person into questioning their own perceptions or beliefs by presenting false information or denying the truth. This type of trolling is designed to sow confusion and distrust, and it can have serious consequences for the mental and emotional well-being of the person being targeted. It is often easier for perpetrators to hide their true identities or manipulate information in ways that are difficult for the person being targeted to detect. This can leave the person feeling confused, disoriented, and unsure of what to believe.^[3]

Baiting

Baiting is a type of internet trolling that involves deliberately posting inflammatory or provocative content in order to provoke an emotional or reactive response from others. This type of trolling often takes the form of inflammatory or controversial statements, pictures, or videos designed to evoke strong emotions such as anger, frustration, or fear. The goal of baiting is to get people to engage in arguments, fights, or heated discussions, thereby fueling the trolling behavior and attracting attention.^[4]

Inting

Inting is a term used in the gaming community to describe a behavior in which a player intentionally throws a game or acts in a way that negatively affects their own team. This type of behavior is often seen as a form of trolling because it is intended to provoke an emotional or reactive response from others, often with the goal of causing frustration, anger, or disappointment. Typical inting behaviors include deliberately feeding the enemy team, intentionally dying or making mistakes, or sabotaging objectives or goals. ^[5]

Video Game and Trolling

Popular Streamer and Toxicity in Game

Tyler1

Tyler1^[6], also known by his online handle "Tyler1," is a popular streamer and professional player of the popular MOBA game League of Legends. He is known for his high-energy and often controversial streaming style, as well as his skill and proficiency at playing the game. He has a large following on Twitch, where he streams his gameplay and interactions with his audience. He's also been banned in the past for his toxic behavior in the game but later on Riot Games lifted the ban after he showed good behavior.

Tyler1's rise to fame was fueled in part by his trolling behavior, which involved deliberately inciting anger and frustration in other players, as well as making inappropriate and offensive comments. His aggressive play style and abrasive personality quickly made him a polarizing figure in the gaming community, with many people finding his behavior entertaining, while others viewed it as toxic and damaging to the online community. The problem claimed by the community of players and some streamers is that if streamers and professional players being toxic and trolling in game is not a huge problem, then it is unlikely for anyone follow the protocol and be polite to other players. ^[7]

The Mechanism of Counter Trolling in Game

The counter trolling system implemented for League of Legends focuses on abusive language or negative in game behaviors. The system is detecting if there are words relating to racism or if the player is having negative behaviors such as staying AFK^[8] and feeding enemy. Players who know the bottom line of the system can avoid getting banned^[9]. Soft inting such as playing with inactive or negative behaviors would not be punished unless it is reported and verified by real human. The credit system in game acts as a positive motif for the players to act politely toward others. It rewards players with icons and other in-game benefits. Players who keep a good record will show their high credit level to others. The system had a success in reducing the level of toxicity in game, but some players still complain that the system is being very harsh to even slightly negative words or behaviors. It takes much more games to get the credits back when a player act negatively in game, which demotivates players when they have been good for a long period of time.

Competitive Games and Ethics issues behind

Competitive gaming refers to playing video games against other players in a competitive manner, often with the goal of winning. Addiction to competitive gaming, also known as "gaming disorder," is a condition in which a person becomes compulsively engaged in playing video games, to the point that it interferes with other aspects of their life^[10]. League of Legends perhaps is one of the examples on the competitive game and ethic issue, as its ranked games are believed to be competitive especially when it gets to high elo^[11]. It is generally believed that the games in high elo are more toxic than low elo games. Researchers have found out that the dopamine rewarding system correlated to the game results. If players are on the winning side. They will get dopamine rush in their head every time they land a kill, hit a skill shot, and by the time the game ends the player's head would be full of dopamine and they usually feel thrilled. On the other side, if the player is losing, then it is unlikely to get the feeling of dopamine rush in head as they are winning. Once player lose, they will feel exhausted. Those losing players tend to queue up for one more game and they are more likely to flame teammates who act not as expected. For some individuals, the effects of in-game flaming can be particularly pronounced, especially if they have a history of mental health issues or are particularly sensitive to negative comments. In some cases, exposure to in-game flaming can even trigger panic attacks or other forms of acute distress. Moreover, the anonymity and distance of online gaming can make it easier for players to engage in negative or flaming behavior, as they may not feel accountable for the impact of their words. This can lead to a cycle of negativity, as players continue to engage in harmful behavior, causing harm to themselves and others. ^[12]

Social Media and Trolling

Twitter and internet censorship

Twitter's enforcement of censorship policies has been inconsistent, and this is leading to debates about the role of social media companies in regulating speech online. Some argue that Twitter has a responsibility to enforce its rules to ensure the safety and well-being of its users, while others argue that the company should be more transparent and consistent in its application of these policies, especially when it comes to political speech, and it is best for the company to try minimize the amount of censorship placed on content.

Trolls on Twitter are individuals or groups who deliberately post inflammatory or off-topic messages in an attempt to provoke others into an emotional response or to disrupt normal on-topic discussion. They often use fake or anonymous accounts to conceal their identities and can spread hate speech, misinformation, or other types of content that violate Twitter's policies. ^[13]

The prevalence of trolling on Twitter has been a major issue for the platform, as it can create a hostile environment for users and undermine the integrity of public discourse. It has been reported by researchers that training modern Artificial Intelligence on Twitter would end up an AI with a lot of trolling behaviors and stereotypes^[14]. In response, Twitter has implemented several measures to address the problem, including improved tools for reporting abuse, increased enforcement of its policies, and efforts to limit the visibility of troll-like behavior.

Reddit and Karma System

Reddit is a social media platform that allows users to submit and vote on content in the form of links or text posts. The platform has a unique system of rewards called "karma," which is intended to encourage high-quality contributions and positive behavior. In Reddit's karma system, users receive "upvotes" when other users like their contributions, and they receive "downvotes" when other users do not like their contributions. The total number of upvotes and downvotes determines a user's overall karma score, which is displayed next to their username. Karma is intended to serve as a measure of a user's contributions to the community and is often seen as a symbol of status and reputation on Reddit. However, the karma system can also be used to manipulate the visibility of content on the platform, as users can upvote or downvote posts in order to push them to the top or bottom of a subreddit's page.

Despite its flaws, the karma system remains an important part of Reddit's culture and community, and is often used to help determine the quality and relevance of content on the platform. By rewarding positive contributions and discouraging negative or off-topic behavior, the karma system helps to maintain the integrity of public discourse on Reddit.^[15].

Psychological Reasons behind Internet Trolling

Anonymity

The anonymity feature of internet allows one user to hide their real identity. Comparing to real life talking and discussion, there are a few differences causing people more likely to act aggressively. First is that online activity lacks consequences to users. When the individual is anonymous, they feel less accountable toward their actions and words and they do not face the consequences for negative behaviors in real life. Low punishment reduces the cost of troll behaviors, and people might behave not as who they are in real life. Secondly, there is disinhibition effect taking place when people are using internet. Such effect encourages people to behave more freely and openly compared to real life. As a result, internet users would engage in behaviors they would not do otherwise. The increase in confidence and perceived power gives internet users a false perception about their control over the situation. In this case, internet users feel emboldened to express themselves and they are less conscious of the potential negative effects of their behaviors.

Attention Seeking =

Some individuals engage in online activities for reactions from others, regardless it is positive or negative. The motivation behind can be a desire for validation, recognition that they feel hard to get in real life. Negative in-real life factors such as being lower class or uneducated reduce individual's chance for positive feedback from others. The boosted sense of satisfaction from attention caused by online trolling reinforced individual's reliance on internet trolling, which makes individuals addicted to the feeling. ^[16]

References

1. ↑ “How Trolls Are Ruining the Internet” Time , 18 Aug. 2016 https://time.com/4457110/internet-trolls//
2. ↑ Hostility Online, First Monday Peer-Reviewed Research https://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/download/11547/10076
3. ↑ Sociology of Gaslighting, Paige L. Sweet https://www.asanet.org/wp-content/uploads/attach/journals/oct19asrfeature.pdf
4. ↑ Baiting the Hook, Cristian Luga, Jason Nurse, Arnau Erola, 10th Jane 2016 https://hcis-journal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13673-016-0065-2
5. ↑ Toxic Behaviors in Team-Based Competitive Gaming, Yubo Kou, Nov 2020 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343696767_Toxic_Behaviors_in_Team-Based_Competitive_Gaming_The_Case_of_League_of_Legends
6. ↑ "Tyler1" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyler1
7. ↑ “League Of Legends Has A Massive Toxicity Problem And Some Streamers Are Contributing To It” Nutan Lele AFK Gaming, 18 May 2020 https://afkgaming.com/esports/originals/4020-league-of-legends-has-a-massive-toxicity-problem-and-some-streamers-are-contributing-to-it/
8. ↑ What is AFK? https://www.grammarly.com/blog/afk-meaning/#:~:text=Afk%20means%20away%20from%20keyboard,IRC%20was%20at%20its%20peak.
9. ↑ “T1 flaming teammates” Alpha T1 , 18 Feb. 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4uz0FNfMtk//
10. ↑ "Pros and Cons of Competitive Games" 10 May 2021 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.651530/full
11. ↑ what is elo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elo_rating_system
12. ↑ "Anonymity encourages bad behaviour in online computer games" Science Daily Taylor and Francis Jan 2014 https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140109003913.htm
13. ↑ "Twitter and Trolls" Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/oct/30/twitter-trolls-bombard-platform-after-elon-musk-takeover
14. ↑ "Twitter taught Microsoft AI to be an asshole" Theverge James Vincent, 24 Mar 2016 https://www.theverge.com/2016/3/24/11297050/tay-microsoft-chatbot-racist
15. ↑ "Reddit Karma System" Makeuseof ALICE KOTLYARENKO 31 May https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/what-is-reddit-karma/
16. ↑ " Evidence that attention-seeking conceptions are associated with increased psychological resilience" British Psychological Society, John Maltby, Feb 2015 https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bjop.12154