Internet Psychology: The Double Personalities of Online Vs. Real-Life People Human psychology is not as simple as it seems. As the title of this article may imply, you might be guessing that the different online personalities we encounter on our everyday internet experience are somehow fake versions of the real people behind them. This isn’t exactly true.
It is indeed a fact that two different personalities emerge when we compare an individual’s online behavior and their behavior in person. This is especially true when it comes to online chat rooms. However, saying that the personality of a person you’re encountering in a chat room or any other online platform is a ‘fake version,’ isn’t the right way to put it. In fact, the opposite
may be true, because, on the internet, you’re seeing a more uncensored version of who that person really is.
Try thinking about it like this. As humans, we act differently in different social settings. For instance, in the workplace, you can be an entirely different person in front of your boss than you are with your friends. In the same way, you act freely in front of your partner in the privacy of your bedroom which is different from how you would act in front of strangers in the Subway. In all these cases, the different versions of your personality cannot be marked as true or fake. It is all a natural phenomenon where humans put up different layers of reservedness, formality, or superficiality in different circumstances.
So when it comes to the internet, a particular section of a person’s personality is triggered that dominates their online behavior. The changes in an individual’s online behavior are fueled by the anonymity they enjoy, the freedom of expression,
degree of comfort, and their current psychological state. The combination of these factors really brings a truer version of our personalities to the forefront.
The Role of Anonymity On the internet, nobody can tell who you are as long as you don’t reveal your real identity. The degree of anonymity one can enjoy gives you a feeling of freedom and the urge to do things you can’t in front of people who know you or can hold you responsible for doing or saying something ‘odd.’
Here, it must be noted that there still are different degrees of anonymity on the internet. You are not very anonymous on social media platforms like Facebook or LinkedIn. These platforms have regulations to only have ‘real people’ use the platforms, but you can still hide your real name and what you look like.
On the other hand, there are online chat rooms that offer a much greater degree of anonymity. For instance, if you’re in an International Chat Room, you’ll encounter dozens of users conversing with each other, talking about random things and you can do or say whatever you like with the 100% anonymity you enjoy in the chat room.
The fact that people don’t know you in the real world, you will not be held responsible for saying anything, and the general comfort of being on the internet triggers special human behaviors that are commonly encountered in an online chat room.
So without further ado, let’s talk about the different personalities you can find in an online chat room, and how you can interpret their real personality with the help of psychology.
Online Chat
Types of People You’d Find on an Online Chat and Their Real-life Personalities The Troll The internet is full of trolls, it might be the most commonly found type of internet user across the many online platforms. A troll is someone who’s always trying to initiate conflict, or arguments in an online setting by making extremely rude, upsetting, and inflammatory remarks.
They usually use humor as their primary weapon. But here, the humor is limited to the troll only, as the rest of the users find their behavior rather disturbing. Encountering an internet troll is rarely a pleasant experience and the best way to deal with them is to ignore them entirely.
Trolls resort to the internet to vent. When they find no other place to take out the tons of frustration they’ve been carrying on their backs, they find the internet as a convenient option to take out all the negative emotions they’ve been holding in. Take our advice, the next time you come across an internet troll, let it pass.
However, we should acknowledge that there’s a troll inside each of us. The internet wouldn’t be as fun a place it is now if it wasn’t for the mild and mutually acceptable trolling going on on different online platforms. As long as the trolling is not crossing
any sensitive limits, trolls make the internet a better, funnier place.
The Street Smart You want to get things done through the quickest way possible? You chat up and make friends with a street-smart person. They are the ones who know how to handle practical situations, no matter how tough they seem. A street-smart person does not necessarily have to be well-educated or academically gifted, but they have the skills to solve everyday problems. In simple terms, they are Jack of all trades, master of none. However, they possess vast knowledge about several things and can help you when no one else does.
A street-smart person has gained all that experience mostly through trial and error; therefore, mostly, they’ll already know the outcome before things come into play. Apart from helping
you tackle a tricky situation, they’ll also have several fascinating stories to share, making your conversation highly interesting.
The Legal Expert Wouldn’t it be great if you found a chat mate as well as someone who can give awesome advice for legal matters? That is exactly what the Legal Expert personality is all about. These are individuals with extensive knowledge and professional skills about law and courts, and can offer useful legal advice. They can help you with the legal aspects of numerous decisions, findings, and other similar matters. Apart from being a good conversation holder, a legal expert can also offer excellent recommendations relevant to their expertise.
The Secret Power What do most of us desire? Power, solitude, the freedom of being able to do whatever our heart desires. While there’s no
doubt that these attributes are great, sometimes they can be the reason for your sadness.
A person with immense power and influence in the real world, such as a top business tycoon or deep state member, is still a human. They wish to make good conversations, and if lucky enough, life-long friends like a regular societal member.
As content as they may seem at the top, they really are alone up there, with little to no friends to speak to in real life. And thus, in our chat rooms, you’ll find these people with the Secret Power, just waiting for someone to strike a casual chit-chat. They may hide their real identity, in fear of the society or being taken advantage of. However, those who prefer making friends with the smart and slightly intimidating people, the Secret Power fellas are just for you.
The Music Lover
For many people, music is not simply a hobby or profession, but a love language. One that they use to communicate in both romantic and platonic relationships. When music lovers cannot express their true emotions, they resort to music to offer you an insight into what they really feel. A music lover forms a deep emotional connection with those sharing this similar love.
As proven by psychology, music tells a lot about a person. For instance, individuals with the well-developed ability to comprehend feelings and thoughts in themselves as well as others, often referred to as empathizers, tend to like mellow music, as it evokes deep emotions in them. So if your chat-room friend is talking non-stop about mellow music, tell them you feel they are empathetic. Congratulations! You’ve scored brownie points right on the first day of conversation.
The Wannabe Ultra-Rich
Okay, so this is one persona almost all of us have encountered and may even remember the internet profile that always acted like the billionaire they never really were. This random internet user may or may not have a $ sign at the end of their username, but one thing is for sure, they never spend a day without posting a picture of a supercar or private jet they’ve downloaded from the internet.
When you encounter such a personality, it is almost always apparent that they’re bluffing about their riches. But why do they do it? Why can’t they enjoy their online time without lying about how rich they are?
This kind of online behavior can be identified as attentionseeking behavior or a way to gain validation from online peers. Such an individual thinks they might gain respect, attention, and a few praises from his or her online friends if he boasts about the private jet they don’t have. But what they don’t realize
is any sensible person can tell a fake millionaire from a real one, and they should stop making themselves look dumb.
The Attention Seeker If you see someone posting excessively sad content or telling weird stuff about themselves, chances are they’re just carrying out an attention-seeking stunt. We don’t want to sound too judgmental here, but a prominent attention-seeker is almost always found in every online chat room.
As the name suggests, such personalities are just in need of someone to talk to, someone they can share with. Attentionseeking behavior is common in individuals who’ve not received enough attention from parents as children, and often went unnoticed and ignored by their age mates in school.
The Shady Mafia Member
Taking advantage of the complete anonymity the internet has to offer, people can portray themselves as they like in an online chat room. One of the most common instances is finding a person trying to look dangerous and all, saying they belong to a gang or something, so nobody messes with them.
This is another example of a person trying to live out a fantasy in the free world of the internet. Don’t take them too seriously, just have fun. You could play a reverse Uno card and act like a government official, just for the fun of it.
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