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Surprising Science

Study: Online Trolls Are Sadists

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A team of Canadian scientists have confirmed what Internet users already know: trolls are sadists and suffer from other personality disorders. In the wild worldwide web, where anyone can be anonymous and spout off anything they please, sadists and narcissists like to take full of advantage. They enjoy harassing and hurting others through cyber bullying, a serious problem that can lead victims to suicide. As Daniel Honan wrote for Big Think, it’s time that we married the freedom of the Internet with an intolerance for sadistic behavior online. To read more about the study, Internet crime author Nate Anderson breaks it down for Ars Technica.


Image credit: Jens Rost/Flickr

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