The psychology behind internet trolling

“It will end in tears”, declares a popular meme on Kenya’s Twitter space. The meme is shared when someone posts something that is likely to provoke the so-called keyboard warriors. The phrase signifies the rampant and normalised nature of trolling on social media. Lately, this trolling has escalated, such that each week, a victim or two is torn apart. From politicians to journalists to entertainers, it’s a never-ending list.

Where does internet trolling stem from and why has it increased in frequency and intensity?

Perhaps we should start by defining internet trolling, which is also known as cyberbullying. An internet troll is someone who shares provoking or inflammatory messages on the various internet platforms. A troll’s intent is to upset, sow discord and trigger a reaction from the victim and other internet users.

INTERNET TROLL

A quick search using the words ‘internet troll’ will lead you to an interesting top search: “Internet trolls for hire”, which tells you that people have even gone ahead and made a ‘profession’ of it.

On Quora, a popular chat room where people ask and respond to questions, in April 2019, someone asked how he could go about hiring an internet troll. The post attracted various responses, with one advising him to go to 4chan.com — an image board platform that allows people to post content anonymously in any field.

The platform has become a breeding ground for trolls and is home to disturbing explicit sexual content.

In Kenya’s social media space, internet trolling manifests itself in a number of ways, with platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp groups being the most commonly used channels.

Anne Mumbi, a clinical psychologist with True North Society, lists several forms of cyberbullying, which include, fraping, harassment, exclusion from in-groups, threatening, shaming, catfishing, trickery and stalking.

Most of these forms have manifested in different ways in Kenya. For instance, pseudo accounts are commonly used to shame and embarrass people through negative comments or leaking private conversations and images without consent.

BULLIES

Bullies also use trickery to acquire private details or film controversial videos of the victim which they then leak online to shame.

Paul Ali, an active Twitter user, joined the platform seven years ago. He acknowledges that the country’s Twitter community has mutated into something much less desirable compared to what it was.

“Back then, we used to hold leaders accountable by inspiring change for the common good. We also engaged in crowd funding for those in need,” he recalls.

The Twitter community also inspired justice through public outcry. Today, a one-minute scroll through the most recent tweets paints a different picture.

“Nowadays, tweeps will post dirty content or nudity to attract likes, retweets and a large following,” says Ali. There is also lots of trolling, which, he says, has been persistent since 2019.

“It starts with people who have a big following. They post something about someone and the rest pick it up with offensive comments, which will prompt others to dig dirt on the victim and display it on the platform,” he says.

Tea-spillers and ‘innocent drinkers’

ATTACK PEOPLE

Some also constantly attack particular people, especially politicians, in a manner suggesting that they’re on someone’s payroll.

But online trolling is not just a Kenyan problem. In 2018, Amnesty International released a report based on a 16-month study on the forms of abuse women experience online. There was a special focus on the US and the UK, with 86 women from these two countries being interviewed. They represented various fields such as blogging, journalism, activism, politics, entertainment and tech.

The researchers also engaged experts and commissioned Ipsos MORI, a research firm to unearth women’s experiences of online abuse through an online poll in eight other countries.

In addition, Amnesty sampled and analysed tweets directed at various women on the platform.

The report: Toxic Twitter – A Toxic Place for Women, revealed gross abuse focused on women’s sexuality and their general life choices.

The survey showed women of colour and other minorities were easier targets for trolls.

The results also sampled several quotes from the then Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, who acknowledged that Twitter had turned into a platform for abuse where voices are silenced. He said the company was working on finding a solution.

SOCIAL CIRCLES
Mary Kittakah, also a clinical psychologist, points out that online trolling is more likely to target politicians, media personalities, musicians and popular comedians since they are in the limelight, meaning that people will have something to say about them.

Also worth noting is that those who have been bullied in the past (repeat victims), are easier targets.

And, when offline social circles turn toxic, the toxicity is likely to spill over online. A case in point is the ‘tea-spilling’ phenomenon, which entails spreading rumours or sharing embarrassing stories about an individual. The rumours are known as ‘tea’ in internet slang, while the person sharing them is known as a ‘tea-spiller’ or ‘server’. There will also be partakers or drinkers, the ones that consume the rumours.

Ali hints that ‘tea-spilling’ is commonly accepted as a way for people to gain influence on digital platforms. “When people break juicy stories about others online, they’re likely to gain ‘respect’ from other followers.”

As expected, tea partakers will not only enjoy the gossip, they will also share the tea and add sugar to it.

It may seem like a fun activity given that people love gossip, but the aftermath is usually damaging to the victims. Often, the tea revolves around leaked nudes, private conversations, break-ups and extramarital affairs.

Time and again, ‘tea-spilling’ is a result of broken offline relationships, which transition to online shaming and subsequent bullying. Just what are the characteristics of people who spill or drink tea?

CYBERBULLYING
“There are two categories of trolls. The first one comprises of people who initiate or launch cyberbullying attacks on specific victims (tea-spiller) and the second is made up of people who comment on the articles and participate blindly without taking time to fact check (drinkers),” says Ms Mumbi, the clinical psychologist.

The second category can be made up of people affiliated to the cyber bullies. They support the bullies whether they are right or wrong, probably to avoid being bullied or to experience a sense of indirect power.

She further explains that the initiator is often a complex character, whose true psychosocial status cannot be pinned down accurately, especially on the digital space.

“They could be anything from sadists, to narcissists, psychopaths, or people who are just hurting,” she says. Often, a bully will be miserable in one way or another and therefore certain people or scenarios trigger outbursts. For instance, the current pandemic we’re dealing with has triggered frustration and uncertainty, hence people are likely to ‘lynch’ others online more frequently,” she says.

Such people might be motivated to react aggressively towards people who don’t seem as frustrated or as affected as the rest of the world, she adds.

NEGATIVE REACTIONS

This means that sharing photos of yourself having a good time or doing better than everyone else might elicit negative reactions.

The psychologist further explains that an initiator bully derives pleasure from making others suffer, emotionally of physically. They have no empathy, and when confronted, they are likely to put up a spirited fight, and as the drama intensifies, so does their pleasure.

“In psychology, we say hurt people hurt people,” says Kittakah.

Simply put, a bully will hurt you drawing on their own insecurities or struggles. Take for instance the infamous Incel subculture, an online community comprising of individuals who define themselves by their inability to find a sexual or romantic partner. Incel is the short form for ‘involuntary celibates’.

Members of this subculture are known to spread hate and misogynistic views on various platforms, most of which have banned them.

Their hate emanates from their inability to find love and romance and therefore channel it to people who have found this, or people who ‘should’ offer those things to them. Ironically, the subculture started as a support group for such individuals.

What the online bullies do not understand is that when they troll someone, they not only hurt this person, they hurt themselves too.
“When you troll others, you alienate yourself and block opportunities,” says Kittakah,.

Trolling, she adds, could lead to loneliness. There is also the fact that trolls will only attract other trolls, therefore increasing their chances of being bullied in future.

Ali agrees, noting that online bullies tend to experience a ‘high’ for a very short period in terms of influence and following, but in the long run, they fade away.

TOXIC ENVIRONMENT

However, establishing what one is hurting from and dealing with the hurt constructively is more likely to yield the happiness that has been elusive.

For the bystanders, existing in such an environment leads to a skewed perception of the world, whereby they think everyone is bad and that there is no happiness in the world. A toxic environment is not progressive to anyone, not the one spilling the tea, or the one drinking it.

Ali says he prefers to exist on social media platforms that generate happiness and progress.

“I’m just giving myself time to observe the current platform I’m using. If things don’t change, then I’ll have to find a better platform,” he says.

With time, bystanders are also likely to become passive participants in trolling if it becomes the norm among their online communities.

Needless to say, victims are hit hard by internet trolling and bullying. Ms Kittakah says that victims are likely to experience anxiety when logging into their social media accounts or checking messaging apps. They will also experience fear of offline attacks if they have been threatened or if they share physical communities (such as school or workplace) with the bullies.

For those who are predisposed to, or struggle with existing mental health conditions, the risks are much higher. For instance, if one was already depressed, they are likely to get more depressed or develop further complications following trolling.

To escape the pain, some victims may engage in substance abuse, turn into bullies themselves, and in extreme cases, may become suicidal.
The victims may also become self-critical in a non-objective manner whereby they begin to question their abilities to do certain things or their physical appearance.

PAUSE AND REFLECT

Though cyber bullies are lurking in every social media space available, there are steps that one can take to protect themselves. Mumbi says that it starts with awareness.

“Many barely pay attention to things like privacy settings on social media, which would go a long way to deflect scrutiny,” she points out.
Ms Kittakah emphasises the importance of pausing and reflecting before engaging people on online.

“Ask yourself whether what you are about to say will yield a positive result for you, the people you’re engaging and the rest of the online community. Remember, whenever you share harmful content or spew negativity, you too are affected. Besides, you never know who is watching your online behaviour. Pause and reflect before you start typing.”