Aggression and Consistency of Self in Cybertrolling Behavior

Abstract

While varying greatly across the population, aggression is a trait that is felt and displayed by most. Online, a form of aggression is cybertrolling, one of many types of cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is a harmful online behavior that is difficult to predict and prevent. To address this issue, this study examines offline aggression and online aggression (cybertrolling behavior) and the consistencies or discrepancies between offline and online self-presentation of aggressive individuals. It aimed to determine whether or not general aggression is a good predictor of cybertrolling behavior. An online survey for adults (N = 531) showed a significant relationship between aggression and cybertrolling behavior, suggesting aggressive individuals offline are aggressive individuals online. Regression analysis showed that offline aggression can be a good predictor of cybertrolling behavior. However, the results also showed that there are inconsistencies between offline and online self-presentation for individuals who show higher levels of aggression. This study highlights the important role aggression can play in how one presents the self online.