The social phenomenon of trolling: understanding the discourse and social practices of online provocation

Despite its benefits, the online environment fosters darker consumer behaviours including conflict, revenge, and aggression. Trolling has recently entered the marketing lexicon and poses a substantial threat for consumers and brands. However, current understandings of trolling are limited by a lack of empirical research, and a focus on undiscernible ‘trolls’ and their behaviours. Accordingly, the term ‘trolling’ has become a catch-all to describe almost any online misbehaviour. This research takes a broader perspective by examining the historical and discursive conditions that have produced trolling and its social practices. Combining a Foucauldian archaeology with marketing practitioner interviews, this study contributes a comprehensive understanding of trolling as a social phenomenon, the social practices that constitute it, and how trolling is enacted within consumer-brand interactions.