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Why Trolls Start Flame Wars: Swearing and Name-Calling Shut Down the Ability to Think and Focus
Zero Hedge ^ | 02/25/2014 | George Washington

Posted on 02/25/2014 11:33:55 PM PST by tired&retired

Psychological studies show that swearing and name-calling in Internet discussions shut down our ability to think.

2 professors of science communication at the University of Wisconsin, Madison - Dominique Brossard and Dietram A. Scheufele - wrote in the New York Times last year:

In a study published online last month in The Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, we and three colleagues report on an experiment designed to measure what one might call “the nasty effect.”

The results were both surprising and disturbing. Uncivil comments not only polarized readers, but they often changed a participant’s interpretation of the news story itself.

In the civil group, those who initially did or did not support the technology — whom we identified with preliminary survey questions — continued to feel the same way after reading the comments. Those exposed to rude comments, however, ended up with a much more polarized understanding of the risks connected with the technology.

Simply including an ad hominem attack in a reader comment was enough to make study participants think the downside of the reported technology was greater than they’d previously thought.

While it’s hard to quantify the distortional effects of such online nastiness, it’s bound to be quite substantial, particularly — and perhaps ironically — in the area of science news

(Excerpt) Read more at zerohedge.com ...


TOPICS: Religion; Science; Society
KEYWORDS: dncstrategy; flame; lenr; seagullthread; troll; trolling101
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To: SoConPubbie; tired&retired

Exactly — the comment was addressed to Romney, and tired&retired knew it, but went on to cast me as a sociopathic troll in post #12. I wasn’t offended.

Divisive speech is not necessarily expressed through profanity. To the contrary, a recent article appeared describing truth more closely aligned with crass language.


41 posted on 02/26/2014 12:54:35 PM PST by Gene Eric (Don't be a statist!)
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To: Gene Eric; tired&retired
Exactly — the comment was addressed to Romney, and tired&retired knew it, but went on to cast me as a sociopathic troll in post #12. I wasn’t offended.

Too bad he didn't have the grace to apologize.
42 posted on 02/26/2014 1:00:34 PM PST by SoConPubbie (Mitt and Obama: They're the same poison, just a different potency)
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To: tired&retired

Name calling, swearing and nastiness incite anger. Even the women are doing more swearing now. Once the cat is out of the bag it causes more to follow suit. It’s also against the rules here.

Simplistic thoughts perhaps, but it’s caused me to do a lot less posting. [Many others have said that too]


43 posted on 02/26/2014 1:19:52 PM PST by potlatch
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To: tired&retired

Because on the internet nobody can give them the punch in the face they so richly deserve. I don’t think they’re sociopaths, if they were they’d do it person, they’re just regular folks who see the internet as a consequence free zone so they don’t bother to edit themselves.


44 posted on 02/26/2014 1:22:49 PM PST by discostu (I don't meme well.)
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To: SoConPubbie

Pride.


45 posted on 02/26/2014 1:27:30 PM PST by Gene Eric (Don't be a statist!)
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To: AlexW; Old Sarge; Marcella; Windflier; wku man; raybbr; AllAmericanGirl44; OldPossum; ...

He is back! Okay, listen up little fella. Nobody hates anyone here. The only thing hate might be reserved for is anti-American gutless cowards like you who take run out powders and then continue to bash America from turd world countries. Oh yeah one more thing: WHERE IS THE QUOTE LIAR?


46 posted on 02/26/2014 1:37:31 PM PST by bobby.223 (Retired up in the snowy mountains of the American Redoubt and it's a GREAT life!)
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To: AlexW

There ya go again with the lies.

There are lots of happy expats around here.

But they don’t tell us we’re idiots for not being expats.

So we leave them alone.


47 posted on 02/26/2014 2:08:44 PM PST by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
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To: AlexW

Facts: You left America, went to the Philippines, constantly bash the US on FR, then you said if the Philippines became a US state, you would leave there. That is a double rejection of the United States, but you keep posting on FR, which is in the US, continually trouncing the US. In my opinion, you are a troll with no redeeming value.


48 posted on 02/26/2014 2:48:46 PM PST by Marcella ((Prepping can save your life today. I am a Christian, not a Muslim.))
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To: bobby.223

His feelings got hurt again, evidently...

Thin skinned. Too much sun...


49 posted on 02/26/2014 2:56:58 PM PST by NFHale (The Second Amendment - By Any Means Necessary.)
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To: AlexW; Marcella; NFHale; Windflier; DuncanWaring; AllAmericanGirl44; wku man; Old Sarge; raybbr; ...

For a guy so intent on “ignoring them”, you sure do seem to bring us up at every opportunity.


50 posted on 02/26/2014 3:47:08 PM PST by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
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To: DuncanWaring

I think the li’l fella loves us, actually...


51 posted on 02/26/2014 3:50:06 PM PST by NFHale (The Second Amendment - By Any Means Necessary.)
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Fifteen years ago as I first was active on FR I began making the comment that we all need to understand that, here on an internet forum, the manners, comments, decorum and courtesy were exactly like what we had at a Junior High bus stop.

I have only had fleeting times when that rule seemed to not apply. Overall, it is still the best description I can offer.


52 posted on 02/26/2014 3:52:59 PM PST by KC Burke (Officially since Memorial Day they are the Gimmie-crat Party.ha)
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To: KC Burke

“...the manners, comments, decorum and courtesy were exactly like what we had at a Junior High bus stop.”

Will have to rely on your experience as I didn’t have that experience. The bus stopped in front of my house, and I got on. I didn’t live in a town or city. I lived in a Sun Oil Camp in the middle of the east Texas oil field. As a child, I climbed on oil derricks. I suppose if my parents had known that, they would not have been happy with me, but I never did fall.


53 posted on 02/26/2014 4:22:06 PM PST by Marcella ((Prepping can save your life today. I am a Christian, not a Muslim.))
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To: Marcella

I lived in a large suburb to a medium sized city. Leave it to Beaver land.

Our bus stops were the areas, of play and fight; kick or be kicked as well as the land of who could be the crudest or the most unique.

My play area included houses under construction and I was almost killed in one of them by a thousand pounds of falling dry wall board.


54 posted on 02/26/2014 4:31:10 PM PST by KC Burke (Officially since Memorial Day they are the Gimmie-crat Party.ha)
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To: KC Burke

“a thousand pounds of falling dry wall board.”

Glad you survived the wall board and I didn’t fall off an oil derrick. I think kids back then were not as “contained” as they are now. A parent today would likely have us “play” by watching something on TV or playing a video game.

The only car instruction I ever got as a kid riding in the back seat of our car was, “Don’t hold your arm out the window”. My mom knew someone who held his/her arm out the window and a car coming by ripped it off that person.

“Now” is way different from “then”.


55 posted on 02/26/2014 4:43:16 PM PST by Marcella ((Prepping can save your life today. I am a Christian, not a Muslim.))
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To: AlexW; NFHale; DuncanWaring; Marcella; Windflier; AllAmericanGirl44; bobby.223; Old Sarge; ...
"Yes, there is a small group of juveniles on FR that hate my guts because I am a happy expat. I ignore them."

No, what you do is lie about us (me) behind our (my) backs -- IOW, without the common courtesy of pinging us (me) to your comment/lie -- then go whine and cry to the mods when we (I) call you out on it. Nothing but a coward flapping his gums, then scurrying off like a cockroach when the light of truth is shined on him.

I'm glad you're happy, because that will keep you from polluting our shores ever again. But if you don't have the guts to produce the alleged quote in which I supposedly said your sister in Commiefornia gets your SS check, then you're as big a sniveling coward as I have always known you are.

Now, go cry to mods, you simpering little liar. No guts,. and you can't face the consequences of your actions.

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!

56 posted on 02/26/2014 4:54:11 PM PST by wku man (We are the 53%! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUXN0GDuLN4)
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To: DuncanWaring; AlexW; NFHale; Marcella; Windflier; AllAmericanGirl44; bobby.223; Old Sarge; ...
Careful, Duncan...if you upset the little cockroach or hurt his tender chickenhearted feelings in any way, he'll go whine to the mods and get your posts pulled down.

Alex: where’s the quote, liar?

Woof, woof!

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!

57 posted on 02/26/2014 5:05:10 PM PST by wku man (We are the 53%! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUXN0GDuLN4)
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To: wku man; DuncanWaring; NFHale; Marcella; Windflier; AllAmericanGirl44; bobby.223; Old Sarge

Ignore Manger Dwag Soldiers at your peril!!!!

58 posted on 02/26/2014 8:00:38 PM PST by Kartographer ("We mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.")
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To: wku man

I wondered where the posts disappeared to that I was pinged to, guess I could have guessed.

I guess he really is quite the student of liberal methods in that he believe if he repeats his lie often enough; ‘they hate me because I’m happy’, somebody might believe him!


59 posted on 02/26/2014 9:27:37 PM PST by AllAmericanGirl44
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To: Kartographer

I like that :)


60 posted on 02/26/2014 9:28:05 PM PST by AllAmericanGirl44
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