Autoshaping Troll Behaviour

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'Don't feed the troll' is the famous good dictum.

However, when someone is trollish on some occasions, but not trollish on others, the situation is a little more ambiguous.

Autoshaping is the process of reinforcing successive approximations to the desired behaviour. In other words, the troll gets attention whenever posting in a non-trollish style, but is otherwise ignored.

Is such a thing possible? Can one reform a troll this way? And if so, is it more effective in eliminating trollish behaviour than is simply ignoring the troll?

This has nothing to do with anyone on this board by the way. It's provoked by an article on trolling I read recently which got me wondering along these lines.

― the music mole (colin s barrow), Wednesday, 13 October 2004 01:27 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't really believe in trolls. I don't think I've ever come across one. Is C-Man/Controversial Colin/Calum a troll?

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 13 October 2004 01:32 (twenty-one years ago)

It hasn't worked with one of our regulars, but I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that our community is so large. I have this feeling that no matter how often we say "do not feed the troll", someone will always be outraged enough (or have little enough invested in keeping the peace) that they will take the bait and engage on the troll's own turf, which means no matter the intentions, we all lose anyhow.

Of course, I'd love to encourage everyone to just ignore these obvious trolls and not respond to them at all, no matter how tempting it seems. I just am not sure how realistic that is.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Wednesday, 13 October 2004 01:34 (twenty-one years ago)

I reckon the whole concept of trolls was born on the kind of message board frequented by people who don't have much of a social life outside of the internet and thus need guidance on how to deal with people. It's really not that complicated; if someone's being a dickhead either ignore them or take the piss out of them; if they're not then respond to what they're saying. You know, just like in real life.

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 13 October 2004 01:49 (twenty-one years ago)

It seems to be important to pick the warning signs as quickly as possible. That's a bit of an art.

― the music mole (colin s barrow), Wednesday, 13 October 2004 01:57 (twenty-one years ago)

HI DERE

― sometimes i like to pretend i am very small and warm (ex machina), Wednesday, 13 October 2004 02:08 (twenty-one years ago)

OMG, MUMz FLAPz CAME OUT TO PLAY!!!!!!?!

― Chewshabadoo (Chewshabadoo), Wednesday, 13 October 2004 08:04 (twenty-one years ago)

eleven years pass...

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jan/28/death-of-a-troll

Article.

― Mark G, Thursday, 28 January 2016 13:08 (nine years ago)

That was really something. Thanks.

― scarcity festival (Jon not Jon), Friday, 29 January 2016 00:43 (nine years ago)

― Mark G, Friday, 29 January 2016 14:44 (nine years ago)

Yeah, that was really interesting.

― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 29 January 2016 16:01 (nine years ago)

good stuff.

pseudocide!

'That photo of the ill-used My Little Pony? He hadn’t really jerked off on it; the “ejaculate” was just guar gum, an ingredient commonly used to thicken toothpaste, mixed with a little egg and flour – a recipe he found on Reddit'

that seems like a lot of work while you also could just.. :P

― Ludo, Friday, 29 January 2016 21:03 (nine years ago)

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