Training modules/Dealing with online harassment/slides/purpose-of-this-module-2

Purpose of this module

This module is intended to help community leaders, users with advanced rights, and groups handle community challenges around allegations of online harassment and abusive behavior. Working with such reports can be a challenging and time-consuming process. Wikimedia projects' fragmented system can mean a lack of consistent approaches to the issue between different Wikimedia projects, or even within a single project or group. Harassment cases can cause emotional strain on those reporting the abuse as well as those experiencing it, and it is often very difficult to find solutions that satisfy everyone involved.

However, helping fellow community members deal with this issue is important. The experience of feeling harassed is a deterrent to participation. Volunteers often struggle with finding assistance when they feel harassed. Supporting them, and supporting each other in supporting them, may help us avoid losing good-faith contributors who could be helping build out content for readers.

These training materials will evolve over time. Approaches to online harassment, as well as policies and tools, are an expanding area of study.