Trolling as a Destructive Online Practice: Adolescents and Young People as Victims, Aggressors and Bystanders

Occupation: professor of personality psychology department
Affiliation:
Moscow State University
Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis
Address: Moscow, Russian Federation

E. Rasskazova

Occupation: Associate professor of clinical psychology department
Affiliation: Moscow State University
Address: Russian Federation

S. Chigarkova

Occupation: Deputy head of the social psychology department
Affiliation:
Moscow State University
Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis
Address: Russian Federation

Journal name

Psikhologicheskii zhurnal

Edition

Volume 43 Issue 5

Pages

27-35

Abstract

Adolescents and young people, as active online users, face various forms of destructive online behavior, among which cyberaggression dominates. The widespread use of cyberaggression as a negative manifestation of digital sociality determines the interest of psychologists to study its various forms. Yet there is a lack of research on even the most common manifestations of online aggression, particularly trolling, which is an emotionally significant online practice for the younger generation. The aim is to identify the socio-psychological factors of adolescents and young people encountering trolling and to analyze, taking into account the role structure of this situation, the features of negative manifestations of digital sociality as a result of the experience of social interaction online. 1554 adolescents aged 12–17, 736 young people aged 18–30, and 1105 parents of adolescents aged 12–17 from 8 federal districts of Russia evaluated their experiences and possible reactions to trolling and also completed questionnaires measuring user activity, compliance with online and offline communication rules, Internet addiction, personality traits, tolerance, empathy, aggressiveness. Survey results reveal the role of trolling witness as the most common among adolescents and young adults, often underestimated by parents of adolescents. A higher risk of encountering trolling is typical for users with higher digital activity, especially for adolescents aged 12–13. The personal characteristics associated with trolling are less willingness to observe communication etiquette, less tolerance and conscientiousness, more aggressiveness and neuroticism. The choice of the “troll” role was associated with lower levels of agreeableness and tolerance and higher levels of aggressiveness, while the preference for an active prosocial role was associated with higher levels of empathy, tolerance, agreeableness and willingness to comply with online and offline communication.

Keywords

cyberaggression, adolescents, youth, social roles, trolling, aggression, tolerance, personality

Acknowledgment

Research was supported by the Russian Foundation for Fundamental Research, project 20-013-00857 “Socio-cultural and personal predictors of destructive and self-destructive behavior on the Internet in adolescents and youth”.

Publication date

16.11.2022

Number of characters

19496

Cite

GOST	Soldatova G., Rasskazova E., Chigarkova S. Trolling as a Destructive Online Practice: Adolescents and Young People as Victims, Aggressors and Bystanders // Psikhologicheskii zhurnal – 2022. – V. 43. – Issue 5 C. 27-35 [Electronic resource]. URL: https://psy.jes.su/S020595920022780-4-1 (circulation date: 05.05.2024). DOI: 10.31857/S020595920022780-4
MLA	Soldatova, G., Rasskazova, E., Chigarkova, S. "Trolling as a Destructive Online Practice: Adolescents and Young People as Victims, Aggressors and Bystanders." Psikhologicheskii zhurnal 43.5 (2022):27-35. DOI: 10.31857/S020595920022780-4
APA	Soldatova G., Rasskazova E., Chigarkova S. (2022). Trolling as a Destructive Online Practice: Adolescents and Young People as Victims, Aggressors and Bystanders. Psikhologicheskii zhurnal 43(5), pp.27-35 DOI: 10.31857/S020595920022780-4

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