As a psychologist, I'm fascinated by how people behave, and I founded my academic career by researching how people behave when they are online.
Invisible Poets and several of the other poetry groups I run are online. This means I have a vested interest in understanding how poets conduct themselves in online spaces.
One of the key factors of online life is anonymity. There's a great cartoon showing two dogs at a computer screen. One says 'Nobody knows you're a dog on the internet!'
People can, and sometimes do mask their identities online. Many don't share their real names or prefer to use noms-de-plume (as conventional writers have done for centuries), and this affords some kind of anonymity. Unfortunately some (a very few thankfully) see this as an opportunity to behave badly.
They feel that because they are anonymous, they can behave as they like and there will be no consequences. It's similar to the abuse you might get from another motorist. The other driver feels once removed because they are safe in their own vehicle. They wouldn't dream of shouting abuse at you if you were together, face to face in one room. In psychology this is known as disinhibition. Individuals feel less socially inhibited because of their context, in this case hiding behind a fake digital avatar or persona. They think this gives them licence to act like idiots.
Bad online behaviour takes many forms, from abuse and trolling, through stalking and misogyny to masquerading as someone else. Commonly in poetry groups, the individual pretends to be interested in your work and then offers to promote or publish you. Often they are simply trying to appeal to your vanity so they can exploit you.
Others do their best to scam you out of money by pretending to be down on their luck, or in debt, or suffering a serious illness. There are also a few blatant plagiarists out there (more on this in my next blog post) who have no scruples about stealing your idea and pretending it's theirs.
Any and all of these types of individuals are removed from my groups without a second chance. There is no strike two. And that, dear friends is how we try to keep our poetry groups safe. You can help, by calling out these bad behaviours and informing Admin if you spot them.
Steve Wheeler
Image used under Creative Commons License from Pexels
Thanks for this most informative and practical article Steve… disinhibition indeed! I’ve encountered all these particular rapscallions and they hold no love in my heart for their abuse of people in platforms that often offer such positive outlets for creativity. I am loathe to give them a free pass on hurting feelings of any color. Great blog good sir.
ReplyDeleteA very meaningful blog. Thank you, Steve.
ReplyDeleteThis is great info ~ appreciate all you do for us ~ Linda Falter ( it wouldn't let me sign in )
ReplyDeleteGreat stuff, Steve, and these tactics are rampant, not just on Facebook, but on all social site and poetry websites. Much of it is a direct result of classic narcissism and sociopathic behavior, and we should be wary of it all, as it’s a red flag for continued abuse of the rules and common decency. These folks serve no purposes but their own, and are counter-productive to the healthy give-and-take of honest and kind interaction and critique. Thank you for this very thoughtful and informative article. I hope everyone gets a chance to read it.
ReplyDeleteA great blog again. Thanks, Steve.
ReplyDeleteIt’s a rather sad fascination how some people show their truly dark colors under the guise of anonymity, and lenient social sites have given them the perfect atmosphere within which to spread their vile intent and hatred of conformity. I think much of it, when it comes to poetry, has to do with the fact that they have very little creative inspiration in their own tanks, so to make themselves feel better they use anonymity, plagiarism, and just plain being difficult, as a tool to boost their egos. Thank you for this very important and hard-hitting article, Steve, it’s something everyone should read and take to heart. The fact that most of us get very few comments to begin with, can make us a bit gun shy when it comes to people who are just out to hurt others, and we don’t need to give them any more ammunition than they already have. Great stuff here!
ReplyDeleteWell .. Well...
ReplyDeleteThat was very INTERESTING 🤔 Steve!
I can't seem to catch up to ALL going on, going through my own issues here .... I will get OUT of it, asking for nothing lol Anyway, I enjoyed reading all those chancy type friends that reach out.
Governmental people hide behind their shrouds too ...
People love playing games, it's just not right when you didn't ask to play! Thank you for ALL you shared, I learned a couple things! I so wanted to go to college, still do (64 almost, in April) but, I want to study 'Psychology but Criminal kind) What makes people think like they do, I think or I'm sure it stems from my father's actions. LEARNING can be so interesting 🧐
Stay Blessed and thank you for all you share! 🙏🫶🫂💓☕☕