Flutterby™! : Hostile people operate at a higher profile online

Psychology Today: Are We All Becoming More Hostile Online? Has internet communication changed the way we all communicate?

It appears that not all of us are becoming more hostile, but that the people who are get more exposure online, making the perception of hostility outsized.

American Political Science Association: The Psychology of Online Political Hostility: A Comprehensive, Cross-National Test of the Mismatch Hypothesis, Bor and Petersen

Across eight studies, leveraging cross-national surveys and behavioral experiments (total N = 8,434), we test the mismatch hypothesis but only find evidence for limited selection effects. Instead, hostile political discussions are the result of status-driven individuals who are drawn to politics and are equally hostile both online and offline. Finally, we offer initial evidence that online discussions feel more hostile, in part, because the behavior of such individuals is more visible online than offline.

DOI:10.1017/S0003055421000885

Via.