Dark Tetrad
2 episodes tagged "Dark Tetrad".
Why People Become Monsters in the Comment Section
Forget the pop-psychology myth that internet trolls are just lonely people who need a hug. The science tells a much darker story. When you communicate through a screen, you strip the human brain of face-to-face feedback and mirror neurons—our natural evolutionary "brake pedal" for cruelty. Without that biological resistance, attacking someone online delivers a cheap hit of dopamine with zero immediate consequences. In the landmark 2014 study "Trolls Just Want to Have Fun" by Buckels, Trapnell, and Paulhus, researchers examined the Dark Tetrad (Machiavellianism, Narcissism, Psychopathy, and Everyday Sadism). The finding? Online trolling correlated highest with pure, unmitigated Everyday Sadism—the genuine derivation of pleasure from inflicting emotional pain on others. The internet didn’t create sadists; it just gave them the ultimate hunting ground. What do you think? Have comment sections made people more cruel over time, or just exposed what was already there? Drop your take below.
Jordan Peterson Was Right: The Internet Rewards Psychopaths
Why does the internet reward cruelty while insulating bad actors from real-world consequences? In this episode of Sober Psychology, we unpack Dr. Jordan Peterson’s thesis that the digital landscape leaves psychopathic and sadistic traits completely unaccountable. Drawing from clinical research, evolutionary biology, Polyvagal Theory, and scriptural truth, Michael examines why removing physical proximity disables human empathy—and how the modern internet has resurrected ancient pagan scapegoating on an algorithmic scale. If you’ve ever felt the pull of digital rage, watched mob cancellations from the sidelines, or wondered why online discourse feels like constant war, this episode is a brutally honest diagnostic of the digital human soul.