If you want to know about griefing check out EVE online, that game is full of griefers ( including me). Once you play that game, over mmos seem simple compared to it ( I play both games, this one and EVE.) . The death mechanic in swtor is simple, you die, you rez, your ok. In EVE you die, you lose your stuff permmenently including your ship and you have to grind to get it back again. So I would recommend checking that mmo for your phd study.