New type of online bully: the griefer

Online game communities are expanding so fast, that people from all walks of life start to get involved. Professionals, hardcore gamers, little kids, bullies – they’re all there. Wait, what? Bullies?

A health researcher found out that a new kind of cyber bully have emerged. Affectionately named the griefer, these guys play online games to harass other players. According to an assistant professor in health services at Saint Joseph University, Dr. Sally Black, “Griefers trap a victim and they will attack the victim through the game. There’s torment, humiliation and belittling.”

Black believes that these games are addictive “because you have kids playing them for many, many hours a day, and putting their lives on hold basically to play some of these, like Blizzard‘s World of Warcraft and Warhammer.” Gamers involved, mostly the younger ones, are said to have “a strong violent nature and a lot of sexuality in them.”

Black continues the research on online game addiction for children around 12, believing that long term effects include aggressiveness, anti-social behavior and acting out. A case study currently being reviewed observed a 12-year old boy and how his behavior changed after getting into the online world.

Black looks at such addiction as comparable to tobacco and alcohol use. She stated, “right now these marketers are going straight after the young ones to try to get them addicted at an early age, and it’s like a parent trying to fight tobacco and alcohol. It’s very difficult.”

Via Reuters

Online game communities are expanding so fast, that people from all walks of life start to get involved. Professionals, hardcore gamers, little kids, bullies – they’re all there. Wait, what? Bullies?

A health researcher found out that a new kind of cyber bully have emerged. Affectionately named the griefer, these guys play online games to harass other players. According to an assistant professor in health services at Saint Joseph University, Dr. Sally Black, “Griefers trap a victim and they will attack the victim through the game. There’s torment, humiliation and belittling.”

Black believes that these games are addictive “because you have kids playing them for many, many hours a day, and putting their lives on hold basically to play some of these, like Blizzard‘s World of Warcraft and Warhammer.” Gamers involved, mostly the younger ones, are said to have “a strong violent nature and a lot of sexuality in them.”

Black continues the research on online game addiction for children around 12, believing that long term effects include aggressiveness, anti-social behavior and acting out. A case study currently being reviewed observed a 12-year old boy and how his behavior changed after getting into the online world.

Black looks at such addiction as comparable to tobacco and alcohol use. She stated, “right now these marketers are going straight after the young ones to try to get them addicted at an early age, and it’s like a parent trying to fight tobacco and alcohol. It’s very difficult.”

Via Reuters