How to deal with trolls or naughty kids - take it or leave it advice.

[robrinay]

I used to work with young people with Social Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties - It takes a while to modify their behaviour but a simple approach is to use the 'Praise/Ignore' technique. Simply put it means catch them doing or saying something positive and praise it and as far as it is safe to do so ignore negative behaviours and speech or only give a low key correcting response. In this way positive behaviours are rewarded and will usually increase in frequency and negative ones are not rewarded and so usually die out. Alternatively they can be permanently excluded (e.g. from a school or the F.L.) and be sent elsewhere to do further damage with deep feelings of rejection which will magnify their negative behaviours. My advice is for taking or leaving - no problem either way.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Maybe. Not sure that a history of working in human services organisations helps, frankly.

 

[Fanch]

I used to work with young people with Social Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties - It takes a while to modify their behaviour but a simple approach is to use the 'Praise/Ignore' technique. Simply put it means catch them doing or saying something positive and praise it and as far as it is safe to do so ignore negative behaviours and speech or only give a low key correcting response. In this way positive behaviours are rewarded and will usually increase in frequency and negative ones are not rewarded and so usually die out. Alternatively they can be permanently excluded (e.g. from a school or the F.L.) and be sent elsewhere to do further damage with deep feelings of rejection which will magnify their negative behaviours. My advice is for taking or leaving - no problem either way.

Very good advice. In fact should be posted on a sticky! :thumb:

 

[Edward]

It's the same on every forum I have ever been on. Trolls do it for attention. If they never got it, they'd get bored and go away. Not feeding them is the only answer... unfortunately most people can't help themselves.

 

[rocketeer]

Oh well Mr Shopski has gone now. Just finished my gardening and wondered what else he had posted.
Yes best to ignore but they always reappear sometime.
J

 

[HoosierDaddy]

It's the same on every forum I have ever been on. Trolls do it for attention. If they never got it, they'd get bored and go away. Not feeding them is the only answer... unfortunately most people can't help themselves.

Yep..attention by usually gradual outrageous posts only set up for reaction. Some fall for it and become defensive until they eventually realize that they are really being scammed and played.
HD

 

[Feraud]

I moved this to the Observation Bar so the general membership can contribute.

 

[nevadapd]

The approach suggested by robrinay is a good one. As long as someone's behavior earns them something they want (i.e., a reward), it's likely to be repeated. Don't reward it, and the behavior should go away. For a humorous take on the science behind this see this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qy_mIEnnlF4

 

[ButteMT61]

Hey fellas, don't be passive-aggressive... It was ME that had a hella bad day at work and took the hook, line, sinker, and glove off the fisherman's hand. Maybe even a hand.
I reported him and should have left well enough alone. I didn't.
Apologies to the hosts and group.

 

[Feraud]

Hey Butte, don't take it so hard. I thought you were rather restrained with regard to that creep's idiot rantings. You didn't reply much differently than I would have on any given day before a few cups of strong coffee! Trolls come and go. They keep us moderators on our toes.

Also, I would thank the members who post here on a regular basis, share their time and experiences and have to suffer the occasional troll!

 

[ButteMT61]

Thanks friend. But I know better.
I'll work on the "how to measure a jacket" thing and stay out of trouble

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

Geesh, something tells me that I must have missed a major trollkrieg.

 

[Bunyip]

Me too v.c.....crushed....sounds like a good movie...

 

[Feraud]

I'll work on the "how to measure a jacket" thing and stay out of trouble

I'm looking forward to the measure guide!

 

[Sloan1874]

Hey fellas, don't be passive-aggressive... It was ME that had a hella bad day at work and took the hook, line, sinker, and glove off the fisherman's hand. Maybe even a hand.
I reported him and should have left well enough alone. I didn't.
Apologies to the hosts and group.

Butte, I now have a lawyer on 24 hour retainer, just in case. I've got your back man!

 

[Smithy]

Like most prats these people thrive on uproar and getting a reaction. The best thing to do (although the initial feeling is to respond) is to ignore them.

Starve them of what they're looking for and they'll go. Their whole raison d'être is to provoke so if you don't take the bait they'll very quickly disappear because they're not getting what they're looking for.

 

[ButteMT61]

What got me was the accusations towards Craig. I copied them. It was outrageous. I can take flames, but he crossed the line, hence my ill behavior.

 

[Edward]

Sounds like I missed a lot more "fun" than I realised. Eh, well. Good to know the management in these parts are so on top of these things!

 

[tonyb]

I don't doubt (indeed, I'm quite confident of it) that there are people who get a charge out of riling others. We've all had the displeasure of meeting them.

Still, one person's "troll" might be another's outspoken advocate. Political topics are banned around here (thank goodness), so I won't name names, but I'm sure we can all think of political celebrities of every stripe whose antics (or advocacy, depending on one's own biases) are certain to rile up the opposition.

The OP's point is well taken, though, no matter which side of whichever issue one finds oneself. People might throw out all sorts of provocation, but no one has the power, short of credible threat of real harm, to "make" anyone else do anything.

That line about "spelling one's name right" comes to mind. If what the troll (or brat, or jerk at work, or the twerp at the convenience store, or whoever) wants is attention in the form of an in-kind reaction (even if he's so lacking in self-awareness that he has little if any conscious realization of it himself), well, giving that to him amounts to playing his game.

 

[Gingerella72]

Darn, looks like I missed a good show. lol

There must be something in the air lately because a different forum I belong to, as well as a facebook group, has been having the same problems the last couple days. Weird how it all seems to explode at once.