Ordinary people undergo road rage-like personality changes when using internet sites like Facebook and Twitter , a leading psychologist has warned . Ordinary people undergo road rage-like personality changes when using internet sites like Facebook and Twitter , a leading psychologist has warned . A dangerous combination of people feeling distanced from the person they are abusing and having a vast platform on which to vent anger instantly encourages users to become more aggressive . Just as normally calm drivers sometimes lash out when they get frustrated behind the wheel , so ordinary people can become uncharacteristically angry on social media , said Dr Richard Sherry . The clinical director of Psychological Systems in central London said people using social media were less likely to feel empathy or compassion towards others . He spoke as a new poll found almost nine in ten Britons now admit to having lost their temper more quickly online than in real life . Young people were the least tolerant . Likening the phenomenon to road rage , Dr Sherry said : 'This research shows that , if anything , the online space seems to be robbing us of some of the most fundamental aspects of our humanity . 'When using these sites , people are less likely to feel empathy , patience or compassion towards others ; they are significantly quicker to judge and more dangerously reactive in their anger . ' The survey questioned 1,000 users of sites including Facebook , Twitter , WhatsApp , Instagram and Pinterest about whether their personality changes while reading and posting messages . Some 84 per cent admitted they become more easily exasperated and enraged at others online than they ever would in person . Young people are particularly prone to internet road rage , with 26 per cent of the 18 to 24 year olds surveyed saying they are 'always ' worked up when using social media , compared with 18 per cent of 35 to 44 year olds and just 11 per cent of those in the over-55 age group . The survey , carried out by OnePoll for 'anti-Facebook ' social media site Pencourage , also revealed that many regret losing their temper online . Some 35 per cent said they had posted a reply or comment or Tweeted in anger , only to wish they had n't later . A similar proportion admitted being tempted to vent their rage but said they manage to control themselves . Dr Sherry said that like motorists , users of social websites feel protected behind their screens . They are also emboldened by the relative anonymity and the distance between them and the person they are being rude to . The survey questioned 1,000 users of sites including Facebook , Twitter , WhatsApp , Instagram and Pinterest about whether their personality changes while reading and posting messages . Above , file image . Even the simple fact they are n't speaking out loud and so do n't hear what they are saying can make them more reckless . The psychologist , who would like some social media websites to carry warnings that they can make people more impulsive , said : 'The psychological damage we can cause to ourselves and others must undoubtedly be taken into account when interacting via social media . 'Just as we try to be calm ahead of a tense situation on the road , equally we should take a few breaths before posting messages or sending emails . ' Peter Clayton , founder of Pencourage , which bans textspeak and encourages positive messages , said that people are clearly more antagonistic and judgemental on traditional social networking sites and 'now specialists even have a name for it ' . Daniel Miller , a social media researcher at University College London , said that other research suggests the opposite is true . A recent study of Facebook pages of people in southern Italy found that fewer than 10 per cent of comments were negative – and even those used wit and irony to get their point across , rather than hate . Professor Miller said : 'Rage ' is mainly limited to teenage girls quarrelling with each other on Twitter and some political ranting . '
Social media users feel distanced from target of abuse , says psychologist . This is dangerous when combined with vast platform on which to vent rage . Dr Sherry warns it encourages people to be more aggressive .