What would cause someone to verbally attack someone they do not even know?

Question

Are all of them just trolls trying to push buttons for attention? Is there any legitimate reason to be rude and verbally abusive to someone sincerely looking for help or advice? What do see as motivating such behavior?

(Disclaimer: I am not whining and complaining. I am looking for thoughtful insight into this issue)

I am getting some good answers. Just to add. I do not have hurt feelings. I am just trying to be able to look into these people's head a bit.

Answer 1

This is not a single question and will require more than a single answer.

Are all of them just trolls trying to push buttons for attention? Is there any legitimate reason to be rude and verbally abusive to someone sincerely looking for help or advice?

People can be considered rude without meaning to be impolite. Not everyone is in tune with current social grace. Many might have nothing more than a lack of tact and no belief in political correctness. Rules among the young are often very different than their elders. In this respect, I remember a line from the movie “Stand By Me” which essentially said that “Finding new and, preferably, disgusting ways to degrade a friend's mother was always held in high regard.” Would anyone besides a 12 year old boy understand this fully or find this legitimate?

And you make the assumption that every question posted is indeed done by “someone sincerely looking for help or advice.” I have also found questions which were posted just to push another’s buttons. Often words used in the questions contain emotional charging. Consider the word “Cheater” as used in some questions. How many times do we have to hear about a relationship gone bad and get to hear only one side of the story. Two people are always responsible for the strength of any relationship.

What would cause someone to verbally attack someone they do not even know? What do see as motivating such behavior?

The primary cause seems to be bigotry. A deep seated conscious or unconscious bias against a group or individuals in a group based upon generalizations, not specific details of behavior. Rude, impolite, discourteous, bad-mannered, vulgar and even offensive replies are often triggered by habit. What was in times past kept as personal thoughts and feelings is currently being posted in public.

Sure, some people find the need to draw attention to themselves by means of their almost inhuman (troll-like) behavior. Some of these are indeed rude and verbally attack others. Consider for a moment, is there any true difference in the phrases “Go to Hell” and the judgment “You will go to Hell” other than the social acceptability of the second in some company?

Every individual human is unique. Any attempt to define motivation for more than one person is taking steps to join them in their generalizing based bigotry. I doubt that any of them could give you an honest answer to their own behavior, much less the behavior of others (and I realize that this is a generalization).

Answer 2

The anonymity on the internet allows people to say whatever they want and so civility and common sense go out the window now that John Rosenberg is jrcoolio567. When you can't face someone, you can't look them in the eye, it's easy to say whatever you want. If you've had a bad day, you can just go on the net and take it out on some username. It's not a real person to you, it's just an avatar and a name that doesn't really mean anything.

I think you need to have tough skin to hang out on internet message boards because people can get mean. Why? Because they can. I think we've all said things on the net that we would never say to someone's face and sometimes I think it's good. People can relay stories or advice that they might not have the guts to say in the "real world" but then you also have the cowards who go trolling around abusing others because it makes them feel like a big person when in reality, they are just small, insecure and pathetic. In every society, you have your jerks and your bullies, the internet is no different.

Answer 3

The increase in uncivil behavior throughout the world is largely the result of the preponderance of "bad" news that is now available to everyone.

Instead of www being a unifying force as it should be, it is simply adding fuel to the unrest that the world is experiencing as a result of overpopulation. This is exactly the consequences that social scientists were examining in the 1960's. The "berserker" mass killer was predicted, the "terrorist" activity was predicted, and the "mob mentality" exhibited on the internet by faceless, nameless, blameless, anonymous users was predicted.

The motivation is a helpless rage against the unseen forces that people feel are dictating their lives. They (wrongly) feel they have no control over their own behavior, and therefore are "forced" into these useless (in fact damaging) forms of protest.

Answer 4

I am receiving this treatment at work just because of a bad fingernail. Hopefully I'll getting done this week, however, it's not effecting anyone. I work at a restaurant. Sometimes customer will just stare at me hoping that my fake nail will fall off of my naked nail bed. I lost my nail due to a bad epileptic medicatioin.
My coworkers and managers even are laughing. I just don't get it. It's been going on for two months. I wonder what they'll do when I get it fixxed.
I haven't ever stirred up trouble for anyone. A lot of these people have kids and wouldn't want their kids being subjecting to being made fun of at school for two months. It makes no sense. I would love t know what one of them would do in my shoes.
Some of these people have known me for five---even twelve years. All of a sudden, I'm just bad nails. I'm the epileptic who shows up for work the day after having had two grand mal seizures back to back.

Answer 5

I my self have gone through the same thing. I feel what the true answer to all this is. That people who do these type of things are bored. They have nothing better to do with their lives but to stir up crap.
The more you react to their crap the more they add on. The best bet with people who do things like this is to ignore them and move on.
Life is way to short for foolish games. So that's the best advice I can come up with on this

Answer 6

I actually have a Saggitarius Mars & Mercury and that i'd be fairly verbally abusive even as i'm mad. i will say something to harm the different man or woman and tear them down. i'm no longer positive if I say issues out of speedy anger I continuously imagine intently formerly I talk, it truly is extra in basic terms to be sadistic and recommend. i trust in the adventure that they attack me they deserve it. So I regularly imagine of the most hurtful thanks to be verbally abusive to them and then hit them the position it hurts the most and then attack !

Answer 7

It is like writing a letter of complaint to management, but not signing it.
They can sneak in and out, hurt peoples feeling, make crude remarks and get away with it.
If they get reported or banned they come back under another name.
It must make them feel in control or a big deal for a split second.

Answer 8

because some people just like to show that they are cool and some sick people see that type of thing as cool. it's pretty sad that you have to worry about people telling you to stop whining or complaining for asking a question like this. this is some thing everybody should 'whine' about.

Answer 9

Trolls have low self esteem They have to attack others to feel good about themselves. It gives them a sense of power. They may be that loner at school or college. Trolls have invaded Forum as well I had dealings with two of them this morning I ended up just laughing at them they were so pathetic Feel good about yourself, they can't hurt you.

Answer 10

Some people do not know how to speak up when they need to, and since they hold it in, eventually they will break. Unfortunately they tend to explode on the wrong person, or the next person who shows up with a problem and they let that person have it.