Handling rule-breaking by neuro-divergent members

[~ True Legend ~]

Just out of curiosity, how do you handle rule-breaking by neuro-divergent members on forums?
Comprehension issues, hyperactivity/anxiety, not knowing what's appropriate, not understanding instructions given by the moderation team, list goes on...

I find that many will jump to banning rather than taking the time to discuss issues.
But of course there's only so many time and patience the staff can have for "problem members".

@ford8 @Shortie @zoldos @Ravenfreak @Maul @guyyanthony @Naiwen @Nebulous you, as site admins, may like this thread

Obviously this may be a touchy subject for some, understandably!

 

[Shortie]

This is always a tough situation to be in as a forum owner as you can't always know that a member on your forum may have any kind of issues and that may be why they are doing what they are doing on the forum.

As a forum owner, unless the member has done something so severe that I can not take the risk of them staying active on the forum then they are warned before even a ban takes place. They are also able to come to me or other staff members if they wish to explain and let us know anything we need to know and I do encourage that as well.

 

[~ True Legend ~]

Thanks for sharing your views @Shortie

This is always a tough situation to be in as a forum owner as you can't always know that a member on your forum may have any kind of issues and that may be why they are doing what they are doing on the forum.

Very true.

As a forum owner, unless the member has done something so severe that I can not take the risk of them staying active on the forum then they are warned before even a ban takes place.

What kinda severity do you mean?
Like criminal activity? Trolls that completely mess up your forum to a point that other members want to leave due to the malicious lies etc etc?

They are also able to come to me or other staff members if they wish to explain and let us know anything we need to know and I do encourage that as well.

That's good to know

I have strong views on the fact that rather than accusing someone who's an annoying new member of being a troll, you should provide pointers on what annoying behaviours you'd like to be changed, and if they don't, they're either doing it intentionally to wind you up, or they just don't care... which is equally as bad if done repeatedly and is a reasonable request I suppose. I'm of the mindset that you never know what someone is going through.

Never judge someone based on past experience of others, the pitfalls of human nature.

Don't accuse one of having certain intentions, simply take steps to protect your community and move on.
I'm personally very much a "forgive but don't forget" kinda person.


How much leeway would you give in terms of when to warn a member, or when to discuss certain behaviours with a member prior to official warnings? Leniency, or do you treat all members the same and just provide further clarification when necessary?

 

[Shortie]

What kinda severity do you mean?
Like criminal activity? Trolls that completely mess up your forum to a point that other members want to leave due to the malicious lies etc etc?

When it comes to severity I would say when it gets to the point of where their actions are breaking the law or taking things too far in terms of the law. Things such as hacking the forum or messing with the forum to cause issues for the owner and the members are also what I would say is pretty severe.

There is always a line that owners of forums have and boundaries, once those are over stepped for example if they have broken the law or have done something that means they are making life difficult for someone, then I would not give any second chances.

 

[~ True Legend ~]

When it comes to severity I would say when it gets to the point of where their actions are breaking the law or taking things too far in terms of the law. Things such as hacking the forum or messing with the forum to cause issues for the owner and the members are also what I would say is pretty severe.

There is always a line that owners of forums have and boundaries, once those are over stepped for example if they have broken the law or have done something that means they are making life difficult for someone, then I would not give any second chances.

I’m not sure what you mean by messing with the forum to make life difficult to the owner and other members. Do you mean things like gossip behind ppl’s backs, slagging off the site or its members, etc, things like that?

I don’t believe that’s illegal in any way.

 

[Shortie]

I’m not sure what you mean by messing with the forum to make life difficult to the owner and other members. Do you mean things like gossip behind ppl’s backs, slagging off the site or its members, etc, things like that?

I don’t believe that’s illegal in any way.

Messing with the forum in terms of hacking or even bullying and harassing members of the forum. As much as people may have issues that may cause a problem on the forum, I do believe that everyone is aware that hacking or even bullying and harassment are definitely a no-go anywhere.

I would hate to see someone on my forum be abused, harassed, or even ganged up on by members which would, in turn, cause them a lot of issues mentally.