Credits: Social Media
People with dark humor more likely to engage in online bullying, new study finds
Though people with a dark sense of humor have often been uplifted as the funniest of the bunch, those traits could actually suggest they are more likely to engage in online trolling behavior.
The internet is full of interesting people like the recent former Marine who spoke to what a man really is. Unfortunately, for every Marine, thousands of people would sooner spend their time making other people’s lives more difficult. They have been dubbed trolls, and they are not as fun as the Disney characters.
People who enjoy dark humor are more likely to be trolls
A study published in the Behavioral Sciences journal in June explored the topic of dark humor and whether those proficient in it exhibit other dark personality traits.
Though somewhat subjective due to differing opinions on what is considered dark, dark humor is described as a comedy that makes light of serious and often sensitive topics. Mainstream comedians often dubbed dark comedians include Ricky Gervais, Jimmy Carr, and Seth MacFarlane.
Meanwhile, trolling is usually characterized as behavior that is intended to do harm, disrupt, or harass another person online. They also seek to inspire controversy where there is none, usually by inciting online fights between otherwise friendly parties.
Using 165 UK university students as test subjects, study authors Sophie Voisey and Sonja Heintz, both of the University of Plymouth, linked dark humor with the likelihood of engaging in troll-like behavior.
Interestingly, the study also suggested that online trolls don’t like to be trolled themselves.
This illustrates the potential dark psychological motivations behind the appreciation and use of dark humor. Moreover, online trolling appeared to be underpinned by certain aspects of dark humor, the study’s authors concluded.
The study also drew a link with more serious personality traits
Though online trolling is undoubtedly serious, the University of Plymouth study also highlighted dark humor’s troubling link with what is known as the Dark Tetrad.
The Tetrad is comprised of Narcissism, the belief that one is superior, Machiavellianism, the tendency to use people for your own needs, Psychopathy, a lack of empathy, and Sadism, the tendency to derive pleasure from another’s suffering.
People with greater degrees of Machiavellianism and sadism had an increased chance of engaging in online trolling.
The authors added: This research also allowed for deeper insights into online trolls. Interestingly, online trolls did not appear to enjoy being trolled, but they enjoyed trolling, highlighting a disconnect between the two experiences.
“Overall, these results indicate that dark humor may be fueled by dark motivations (e.g., sadistic/Machiavellian ones) and that online trolling is related to darker forms of humor.
