If you call me out in a comment at the end of this story and I ignore you, one of two things are happening. A: I'm not really ignoring you, but I just haven't gotten around to responding yet. Or B: I think you're a troll.
In their video below, posted Sunday, they break down the science behind Internet trolling, citing a 2014 research paper (PDF) that found 5.6 percent of Internet users -- from a sample size of 1,215 online survey respondents -- either consider themselves to be trolls or at least enjoy trolling activities. (It seems reasonable to me to assume that some trolls might not self-identify, making the actual percentage higher.)
The study, which was published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences by a trio of Canadian researchers, delves into the traits linked to trolling behaviors. It found that trolls often have certain things in common, such as psychopathy, narcissism and sadism. If I were a troll, this might be where I'd post an all-caps "DUH!" and a few other rude and inflammatory comments.
