Trolls have surely moved out of their caves and are now constantly roaming the streets of the internet. Constantly thriving on sarcasm and insults, while taking great pleasure in being an insufferable jerk online. You can sense that I have experienced a couple of them, they are literally everywhere. Up to the point of escalating into a much more malicious force of hate than the original jokesters that were prevalent back in the ’90s. And I bet you, these folks have caused quite a number of severe encounters, such as cyberbullying, physical threats, stalking, sexual harassment, etc. It’s just enough time to stop this internet troll.
You do not have to let them make an impact on you or prevent you from participating in your favourite online spaces. I have compiled a complete guide to help you shun these folks completely.
Who is an Internet Troll?
According to Wikipedia, an internet troll is “a person who posts inflammatory, insincere, digressive, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community (such as a newsgroup, forum, chat room, or blog), with the intent of provoking readers into displaying emotional responses or manipulating others’ perceptions.”
To summarise, this simply means that an internet troll is someone or some jerk, who derives immeasurable pleasure from being an uncontrollable folk in an online space, be it on social media, gaming platforms or other communities. They highly specialize in making one uncomfortable by spamming comment sections, private messages, or even threads with abusive and hurtful words to derive attention, response, or reaction from their target.
While some trolls are someone you are familiar with, some can also be anonymous, hiding under unidentifiable usernames and profile pictures. Their only intention is to hurt and piss people off; they are nothing but pests. And I can tell you for free, they do not deserve your attention.
Key Points
- Recognize the personality traits that drive trolls and their motivations.
- Learn to spot common signs of trolling, such as off-topic comments, name-calling, and sarcasm.
- Implement practical tips like ignoring trolls, setting clear guidelines, and using humour.
- Maintain your well-being by not letting trolls affect you personally and taking steps to manage stress.
The Psychology of Internet Trolls
Internet trolls are most likely not stable. Research has shown that these freaks tend to possess personality traits, including psychopathy, Machiavellianism, sadism, and narcissism. These mentioned traits are responsible for their ill-acting, hence making them insensitive to the feelings of others, manipulative, cruel, and self-centred.
While on their trolling mission, some of them embark on their behaviour either for amusement, getting a reaction, feeling superior, attacking people online, or just to vent their anger, just to help them cope with their own insecurities or problems.
Most of them are not normal and surely didn’t come online to have a chit chat with anybody, or enhance learning or exchanging ideas.
Signs You are Dealing with an Internet Troll
Most times, its quite hard to tell between these internet trolls and someone who really wants to have a decent conversation or an argument about a particular topic. They won’t outright come out to tell you that they are trolls, so you need to be on the lookout for them. However, there are some signs and factors that can help you tell if someone is a troll or not. Let’s look at some of the signs:
- Talking off-topic: Some trolls specialise in deviating from the topic at hand to a different, unrelated topic just to irritate a poster or commentator and cause them to respond or act out. So the next time you suspect someone doing this, please ignore them; it weakens them at that point. They’ll also post unrelated images or memes.
- Blindness to evidence: Internet trolls hate anything related to an actual fact; they are more interested in their myopic views just to change the narrative. Mind you, they are fully aware of these facts, but they are more interested in making you pissed.
- Name-calling: Remember, their motive is only to push your button and cause you to act out, and to do this, they can go to any length, which includes name-calling.
- Condescending tone: “Why are you so mad, bro?” Internet trolls derive joy from stirring the fire, then act surprised or dismissive when you become triggered or respond with anger. They tend to manipulate you and then cause you to overreact.
- Sarcasm: They are super sarcastic in nature, and they move so swiftly that you hardly notice it on time. They often use their sarcastic tone to mock or belittle someone. You should look out for this.
- Over-exaggerating: If there is something more to add, it is the fact that they over-exaggerate a whole lot. There is no middle ground with them, and they tend to be on the extreme end of the spectrum. Instead of saying “often” or “sometimes,” they’ll say “always” or “never.”
- Repetition: Trolls repeat the same arguments or questions over and over again, even after they have been answered or responded to. Always looking for an opportunity to stir someone to anger and make them react in a rowdy manner. Please refrain from conversing with anyone if you notice this sign.
One constant behavior of these internet trolls is that most of them can’t stand a face-to-face confrontation, but they are always very powerful when they are attacking through the computer screen. And with this, you will always have the upper hand, no matter what they come at.
8 Tips for Dealing with Online Trolls
One thing to note about these trolls is that they are everywhere; they are not hard to come by, and you will experience them in one way or another as long as you are an active internet user. The only way to tackle them is with your behavior, response, and approach. Truth be told, they are annoying, but one thing you shouldn’t let them do is mess with your mental health.
Studies have shown that exposure to online harassment can lead to stress, anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and even suicidal thoughts. Therefore, it is important to know how to deal with trolls and protect yourself from their negativity and bad energy. Here are some practical steps to help you deal with them:
#1. Starve your troll
I can’t emphasize this enough, your troll wants a reaction! They want you to lash out, to act razz, to loose your senses! Whichever way you see it, they derive pleasure in making you feel that way. So why give them that audience? Why make them feel good if all they want from you is to make you sad and anxious? I know you want to wage a war with them too, but the angrier you get, the stronger they become.
The best approach when it comes to this is to starve them of reaction. It may not be as easy as it sounds; infact, it can be pretty challenging, but you always have to give it a try. Just ignore them, and all of them tire themselves out. When they see they don’t have your attention, they will quit.
#2. Be the Boss! No trolls allowed
Once you are the owner of your online space, either on social media, in a blog, or in another online community, you need to take some decisions that will even keep them away. You’ll need a list of clear guidelines that includes a “no trolling” policy. This will help eliminate disturbing or manipulating comments from trolls.
And if ever they should respond and need to know why their post or comment was ruled out, you can kindly point it out in your policy, hence the removal. This process will help keep them out and curb them from coming to you.
#3. Record it
Your troll is not sensible enough to come online to cause troubles, but you are sensible enough to keep records and evidence. Be it a one-time troll or a constant one, make sure to have solid evidence against them. Take a screenshot of their original message to you, because deleting their comments once will implicate them. Keeping records will give you an upper hand in case things get nasty and you want to take it to another level.
#4. Kill them with kindness
Two can also play the game, you know. As they bombard you with hateful words and comments, let your kindness be their punishment. You don’t need to tell me; I know how hard it can be to respond to hate with kindness. But you should know that trolls are always on the lookout for a fight, and reacting with an opposite approach often stops them in their tracks. It doesn’t hurt to show a little kindness. You might make a difference in someone’s life.
So next time, when they come at you feeling pissed and angry and pushing you to react, please respond with love.
#5. Disarm Them with Humor
Just as I have talked about kindness, humor is the next cause of action to the next online freak you come across. When they try to make you mad, you can try to make them laugh. Laughter is troll kryptonite. There are a lot of inspirations for how to fight trolls with humor. Look at this tread with Wendys.
The brand has become well-known for its tongue-in-cheek humor when responding to trolls.
However, still thread carefully with these trolls when you see them because your or your brand’s response can be easily misread.
#6. Friends-Only Social Profile
Having a friend-only social profile can also save you a lot of stress from these annoying trolls. A friend’s profile tends to shut them out completely, which is pretty cut-and-dry. If you don’t want random trolls to comment on your posts, keep their profiles private. Twitter and other platforms have this feature plus additional photo tagging options:
This solution only makes sense if you are dealing with a personal profile. If you have a business profile, then you will surely want to make your visibility very public to attract your audience.
Facebook can also help you run a privacy checkup to update your settings.
You just have to set individual posts for private, friends, friends with exceptions, specific friends, only you, or customized visibility.
There are a lot of other functions to help you feel safe in your personal account, you just have to explore them on the specific platform.
#7. Block, Ban, or Report Trolls
This is another durable way to completely shun our trolls from getting to you. While this option is more tedious, it’s sometimes necessary if you have a troll that just won’t stop. These popular platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and most other social media platforms, give you the option to report a post for being abusive, among other options like unfollowing the person who posted it.
#8. Decompress Before You Reply
Here I am repeating this for the 100th time in a row. A troll’s goal is to make you and other people upset. Don’t allow them get to you.
You can try these tips:
- Take a deep breath.
- Walk away for a few minutes (minimum).
- Remind yourself that it’s not personal, and it’s not worth getting upset.
When you’re composed enough to return and address the issue, try to keep a clear, open mind. Responding when you are angry, will make you give them the attention they are craving for.
Here is a FREE compiled checklist that will even help you to practice these steps more effectively:
Troll.Pdf
Conclusion
Internet trolls thrive on drama. Once you stoop to their level, they are definitely winning. It’s not about being right or wrong. If you stop engaging the trolls, you’re taking the oxygen away from their fire. And its better to do that than let them win.
Take the high road, and leave the trolls far below.
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