The psychological motives driving internet justice and public shaming
People who support online public shaming and digital vigilantism are often motivated by the pleasure of seeing others suffer and a desire to boost their own moral status, according to a recent psychological survey.
Recent research published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior has explored the psychological motives behind internet justice and public shaming. A survey of 1,000 adults in South Korea revealed that those who view internet justice as effective often experience a sense of pleasure from witnessing others' suffering and a desire for social status.
The study, conducted by criminologists Dosun Kim and Yeon Soo Kim from Dongguk University in Seoul, aimed to understand the motivations behind online vigilantism, which involves exposing, criticizing, and punishing individuals believed to have broken social rules.
The researchers identified two types of moral grandstanding: prestige-seeking, where individuals want to be seen as morally sensitive, and dominance-seeking, where they aim to exert influence or assert authority. Active participants, who engaged in direct actions like sharing personal information or writing accusatory comments, reported significantly higher levels of schadenfreude (pleasure from another's misfortune), prestige-seeking grandstanding, and belief in the effectiveness of online vigilantism compared to passive participants and non-participants.
Passive participants, who merely consumed content criticizing rule-breakers, showed similar patterns in schadenfreude and prestige-seeking grandstanding but lower levels of dominance-seeking grandstanding. Non-participants, who did not engage in online vigilantism, displayed a different pattern: they had higher schadenfreude scores but lower prestige-seeking and dominance-seeking grandstanding.
The study suggests that while active participants derive personal rewards from online shaming, passive participants and non-participants support internet justice primarily due to their desire for social status and moral superiority. This research highlights the complex interplay of emotions and motivations driving internet justice, indicating that public shaming is not solely driven by a genuine desire for justice but also by personal gratification and status seeking.
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