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Voisey S, Heintz S. Do Dark Humour Users Have Dark Tendencies? Relationships between Dark Humour, the Dark Tetrad, and Online Trolling. Behav Sci (Basel) 2024; 14:493. [PMID: 38920825 PMCID: PMC11200950 DOI: 10.3390/bs14060493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2024] [Revised: 05/30/2024] [Accepted: 06/06/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Humour and antisocial behaviour on the internet are under-researched. Online spaces have opened a gateway for new ways to express unrestrained humour (e.g., dark humour) and ways to behave antisocially (e.g., online trolling). The tendencies and motivations of those engaging with such humour and behaviour are yet to be clearly established and understood. The present study aimed to fill this gap by exploring the interplay between dark humour, online trolling, and dark personality traits. Participants (N = 160) completed an online survey consisting of trait scales to assess the Dark Tetrad, dark humour, and online trolling, as well as two online trolling tasks (enjoyment and ability) and two dark humour meme tasks (enjoyment and ability). The results confirmed relationships between the Dark Tetrad and the dark humour trait, and several Dark Tetrad traits were related to the enjoyment of and ability to produce dark humour. Furthermore, dark humour and online trolling were closely related. The findings also revealed that online trolls did not enjoy being trolled but did enjoy trolling, and this ability to troll is underpinned by sadism. These findings illustrate the potential dark psychological motivations for using dark humour, demonstrate that online trolling is infused with darker forms of humour, and provide deeper insights into online trolls.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sonja Heintz
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth, Drake Circus, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK
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Torres-Marín J, Navarro-Carrillo G, Bustos-Ortega M, Heintz S, Carretero-Dios H. Competitive Latent Structures for the Comic Style Markers: Developing a Psychometrically Sound Short Version Using Spanish and US American Samples. J Pers Assess 2024; 106:407-420. [PMID: 37943627 DOI: 10.1080/00223891.2023.2274533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2023] [Accepted: 10/08/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
The Comic Style Markers (CSM) is a questionnaire that allows a fine-grained description of how people differ in the way they display humor in their daily lives. It includes 48 statements capturing eight interrelated, yet distinct comic styles: fun, irony, wit, sarcasm, benevolent humor, satire, nonsense humor, and cynicism. Despite the independent conceptual roots of these humorous domains, the analysis of the CSM scales' latent structure shows that their empirical distinction needs to be improved. Using the information derived from a competitive latent approach, including confirmatory factor analysis, bifactor analysis, and exploratory structural equation modeling, we proposed and validated a shorter 24-item version of the CSM in a large sample of 925 Spanish individuals (SP-CSM-24). This scale-refinement improved the psychometric differentiation of the eight comic styles without undermining the good internal consistency and the temporal stability of the CSM scores. Strong invariance was held for gender and age groups, and partial scalar invariance for countries also emerged using a sample of 318 U.S. American adults. Structural equation modeling also corroborated a convincing test-criterion validity for the SP-CSM-24, with dispositional expressions of benevolent humor (positively) and cynicism (negatively) outperforming other comic styles in accounting for individuals' well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Torres-Marín
- Department of Research Methods in Behavioral Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Department of Social Psychology and Quantitative Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Mariela Bustos-Ortega
- Department of Research Methods in Behavioral Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Sonja Heintz
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, United Kingdom
- Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Hugo Carretero-Dios
- Department of Research Methods in Behavioral Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
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Anderson SAS, Hawes DJ, Snow PC. Cognitive and affective perspective taking amongst adolescent offenders with variants of callous-unemotional traits. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2024:10.1007/s00787-023-02356-9. [PMID: 38200275 DOI: 10.1007/s00787-023-02356-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Evidence suggests that associations between antisocial behaviour, callous-unemotional (CU) traits and cognitive empathy (e.g. perspective taking) vary depending on more fine-grained dimensions of these constructs. This study examined associations between adolescent antisocial behaviour and individual differences in cognitive and affective perspective taking ability. Based on current theory regarding distinct variants of CU traits, we further tested whether the correlates of CU traits differed amongst youth with high versus low levels of anxiety. Participants were 130 male adolescents (81 youth offenders; 49 non-offenders) aged 13-20 years, of predominantly Caucasian and Aboriginal Australian ethnicity. Perspective taking skills were indexed using performance-based testing, and self-report data was collected on CU traits and anxiety in a cross-sectional design. Offender status was associated with poorer cognitive and affective perspective taking. In addition, associations between CU traits and perspective taking skills were moderated by anxiety. Specifically, CU traits were associated with poorer skills for second-order cognitive perspective taking amongst high-anxiety youth, whereas CU traits were associated with better cognitive and affective perspective taking skills amongst low-anxiety youth. More fine-grained assessment of such factors stands to enhance understanding of, and effective intervention for, antisocial youth.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - David J Hawes
- School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
| | - Pamela C Snow
- School of Education, La Trobe University, Bendigo, VIC, Australia
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Humor and Attachment: Exploring the Relationships between Insecure Attachment and the Comic Styles. Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ 2023; 13:161-169. [PMID: 36661762 PMCID: PMC9857711 DOI: 10.3390/ejihpe13010012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
In this study, the relationship between individuals' insecure attachment styles and eight comic styles was explored. A sample of 636 Italian adults (206 males, 428 females, 2 non-binary), aged 18 to 81 years (M = 41.44; DS = 13.44) completed an online survey to investigate the relationship between insecure attachment styles, namely anxious and avoidant, and the eight comic styles, clustered into lighter style (fun, benevolent humor, wit, nonsense) and darker style (irony, satire, sarcasm, cynicism). The findings of this research indicated the lighter and darker styles were differently related to the anxious and avoidant styles. The anxious attachment was negatively related to both benevolent humor and wit and positively with irony. The avoidant style was positively associated with nonsense and sarcasm, while no other relationship emerged. This research indicated that attachment orientations are associated with individual differences in the detailed differentiation of humor-related styles.
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Duarte B, Zhang J. The motive of competition but not courtship positively correlates with self-reported use of aggressive humor: A critical test of the contests- vs. mate-choice hypotheses. Front Psychol 2023; 13:1056217. [PMID: 36710794 PMCID: PMC9874086 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1056217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction The use of aggressive humor (e.g., teasing, schadenfreude, and sarcasm) is a spiteful behavior because it inflicts costs on both others and the self. To explain the existence of this spiteful behavior, two hypotheses derived from sexual selection theory-namely Mate-Choice and Contests-posit that the use of aggressive humor helps one attract mates or repel competitors. Both hypotheses have merit, but extant data are unable to discriminate between them. Methods We critically tested those two hypotheses with a survey study that measured 509 U.S. MTurkers' self-reported tendencies to use aggressive (and other types of) humor, the motives to engage in competition and courtship, and the Dark-Triad personality traits. The final sample was N = 439. Results We found that (1) the motive of competition but not courtship positively and significantly correlated with the self-reported tendency to use aggressive humor. (2) Subclinical psychopathy-a personality trait positively associated with competition-mediated the correlation between the motive of competition and self-reported use of aggressive humor. These results were held in both female and male respondents. Discussion Our findings favored the Contests Hypothesis and helped reveal the psychological mechanism that generates the use of aggressive humor as a form of verbal aggression and spiteful behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brent Duarte
- Department of Communicology, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, United States
| | - Jinguang Zhang
- School of Journalism and Communication, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China,Center for Big Data and Public Communication, Guangzhou, China,*Correspondence: Jinguang Zhang,
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Volkmer SA, Gaube S, Raue M, Lermer E. Troll story: The dark tetrad and online trolling revisited with a glance at humor. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0280271. [PMID: 36897846 PMCID: PMC10004561 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0280271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/25/2022] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Internet trolling is considered a negative form of online interaction that can have detrimental effects on people's well-being. This pre-registered, experimental study had three aims: first, to replicate the association between internet users' online trolling behavior and the Dark Tetrad of personality (Machiavellianism, narcissism, psychopathy, and sadism) established in prior research; second, to investigate the effect of experiencing social exclusion on people's motivation to engage in trolling behavior; and third, to explore the link between humor styles and trolling behavior. In this online study, participants were initially assessed on their personality, humor styles, and global trolling behavior. Next, respondents were randomly assigned to a social inclusion or exclusion condition. Thereafter, we measured participants' immediate trolling motivation. Results drawn from 1,026 German-speaking participants indicate a clear correlation between global trolling and all facets of the Dark Tetrad as well as with aggressive and self-defeating humor styles. However, no significant relationship between experiencing exclusion/inclusion and trolling motivation emerged. Our quantile regression findings suggest that psychopathy and sadism scores have a significant positive effect on immediate trolling motivation after the experimental manipulation, whereas Machiavellianism and narcissism did not explain variation in trolling motivation. Moreover, being socially excluded had generally no effect on immediate trolling motivation, apart from participants with higher immediate trolling motivation, for whom the experience of social exclusion actually reduced trolling motivation. We show that not all facets of the Dark Tetrad are of equal importance for predicting immediate trolling motivation and that research should perhaps focus more on psychopathy and sadism. Moreover, our results emphasize the relevance of quantile regression in personality research and suggest that even psychopathy and sadism may not be suitable predictors for low levels of trolling behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Alida Volkmer
- School of Management, Professorship for Digital Marketing, Technical University of Munich, Heilbronn, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Susanne Gaube
- LMU Center for Leadership and People Management, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Infection Prevention and Infectious Diseases, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Martina Raue
- MIT AgeLab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States of America
| | - Eva Lermer
- LMU Center for Leadership and People Management, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Business Psychology, Augsburg University of Applied Sciences, Augsburg, Germany
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Cao Y, Liu Y, Hou Y, Ji LJ. The effects of benevolent vs. corrective humor on interpersonal liking and behavioral compliance. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2022.111907] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Dionigi A, Duradoni M, Vagnoli L. Humor and the dark triad: Relationships among narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy and comic styles. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2022.111766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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Considering sadism in the shadow of the Dark Triad traits: A meta-analytic review of the Dark Tetrad. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2022.111767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
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Vulnerable narcissism is related to the fear of being laughed at and to the joy of laughing at others. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2022.111536] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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Localizing Gelotophobia, Gelotophilia, and Katagelasticism in Domains and Facets of Maladaptive Personality Traits: A Multi-Study Report Using Self and Informant Ratings. JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jrp.2022.104224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
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