Aggression Notes

What is the limbic system associated with according to Maclean (1952)?

The regulation of emotions and emotional behaviour

What is the limbic system comprised of?

The fornix, cingulate gyrus, thalamus, hippocampus, hypothalamus, and amygdala

Who is associated with the amygdala being considered particularly important in regulating emotional behaviour?

Gospic et al. (2011)

What is the name of study done by Gospic et al (2011)?

The ultimatum game

What happened in the study called the ultimatum game done by Gospic et al (2011)?

• Participants who rejected unfair monetary rewards (seen as social provocation) showed a sudden increase in amygdala activity, measured using fMRI.

• These spikes were less drastic when benzodiazepines were used, indicating a strong link between the autonomic nervous system (amygdala activity) and aggression.

What is serotonin?

An inhibitory neurotransmitter

What is a inhibitory neurotransmitter?

Reduces the action potential in the postsynaptic membrane

What are inhibitory neurotransmitter associated with?

The regulation of impulsive behaviour when present at normal concentrations in the orbitofrontal cortex (Denson et al, 2012).

What did Virkkunen et al (1994) propose?

Serotonin is involved in controlling sleeping patterns due to lower levels found in non-violent offenders, linking serotonin to emotional/impulsive behaviour regulation

What does the over-reliance on treating the limbic system as the sole explanation for aggressive behaviour suggest about neural connections, according to Gospic et al?

The OFC and the limbic system rather than looking at them in isolation.

What evidence supports the negative correlation between increasing serotonin levels and decreasing levels of aggression?

Berman et al found that participants given the serotonin agonist 'paroxetine' behaved less aggressively compared to a control group while playing a video game, delivering fewer and less intense shocks.

What is testosterone?

An androgen (male sex hormone) present in significantly larger concentrations in men compared to women.

What is testosterone responsible for?

The production of male facial characteristics and reproductive organs, secreted from the pineal gland

What can testosterone be linked with?

Decreased testosterone levels and decreased levels of aggressive behaviour, which is a positive correlation demonstrated by castration studies.

How does Dolan et al (2001) support the link between testosterone and aggression?

Showing that violent prisoners in maximum-security prisons displayed higher levels of testosterone than their non-violent counterparts.

Why do Carre and Mehta (2011) suggest the dual-hormone hypothesis?

Testosterone does not work alone in determining aggression but has an antagonistic relationship with the stress hormone cortisol.

How do Carre and Mehta (2011) suggest the dual-hormone hypothesis?

• Increased levels of aggression are associated with increased testosterone levels, but only when cortisol is low.

• This implies that different hormones have different predictive values for aggression and are part of a system when developing aggressive behaviour.

Who studied aggression in twins?

Coccaro et al (1997)

What did Coccaro find?

Concordance rates of 50% for MZ twins and 19% for DZ twins in terms of physical acts of aggression, which strongly suggests a genetic basis for aggression.

What did Rhee and Waldman (2002) find out about genetic factors of aggression?

The differences between MZ and DZ twins in terms of rates of aggression and concluded that a further 41% variance in rates of aggressive behaviour can be accounted for by candidate genes based on their meta-analysis of adoptees suffering from aggressive behaviour and APD (antisocial personality disorder).

What is the MAOA gene?

It codes for the MAOA enzyme that breaks down serotonin within the synaptic cleft after neurotransmission, leading to increased levels of the metabolite 5-HIAA.

What did Brunner et al find out about the MAOA gene?

They provided evidence for the link between decreased MAOA levels and aggression by studying a large Dutch family who were all actively engaged in aggressive behavior (e.g., rape) and who all had unusually low MAOA levels.

What is the cause of high aggression but low MAOA levels?

This means that as less serotonin is broken down within the synaptic cleft, there is a higher rate of serotonin binding to complementary receptors on the postsynaptic membrane, leading to an increased rate of stimulation of the postsynaptic membrane.

What did Frazzetto et al (2007) say about genetic factors in aggression?

That it may be more beneficial to take an interactionist approach.

What did Frazzetto et al (2007) find?

The researchers found that low MAOA levels only resulted in increased aggression when accompanied by traumatic childhood events which had occurred within the first 15 years of life.

What does Frazzetto et al (2007) research support?

The interactionist, diathesis-stress model, where the diathesis (biological vulnerability) is the genetic mutation of the MAOA gene, and the stressor (environmental stressor) is childhood abuse, showing how genes and the environment interact with each other.

What is a major problem with the use of the diathesis-stress model?

The difficulty in distinguishing between the effects of nature (MAOA genetic mutations) and nurture (childhood trauma), as well as determining which has a larger influence.

What did McDermott et al (2009) find?

That provocation in a money-lending game was key to triggering aggressive behaviour in individuals with low MAOA activity levels, whereas previously they displayed the same levels of aggression as the healthy, neurotypical control group.

Why does a sudden on set of anger with low levels of MAOA genes happen?

This suggests that although the interactionist approach may be a better explanation for aggression compared to biological determinism, there is still a lack of clarity over the role of the stressor.

What evidence supports a positive correlation between increasing MAOA activity levels and increasing levels of prosocial behaviour?

• Mertins et al (2011) found that participants with high MAOA activity levels behaved more compassionately in a money-lending game, often with fewer provocations or refusals of offers.

• Therefore, this suggests that the link between MAOA and aggression is valid because correlations in both directions (increasing and decreasing MAOA levels) are supported by research evidence.

What did Merton’s et al (2011) find out about genetic explanations of aggression?

They found that participants with high MAOA activity levels behaved more compassionately in a money-lending game, often with fewer provocations or refusals of offers.

What are high MAOA activity levels caused by provocation?

The link between MAOA and aggression is valid because correlations in both directions (increasing and decreasing MAOA levels) are supported by research evidence.

What evidence suggests a link MAOA activity levels and concentration of serotonin?

Based upon animal studies where researchers are able to ‘switch off’ or prevent the expression of the gene coding for the MAOA enzyme, thus allowing the researchers to study its effects in isolation.

What did Godar et al (2014) find out about the MAOA gene?

The MAOA gene was switched off in mice; these mice were ‘hyperaggressive’, potentially due to the increased stimulation of postsynaptic neurons due to an increased concentration of serotonin in the synaptic cleft.

Alongside additional evidence that the serotonin agonist ‘fluoxetine’ reverses this effect, it increases the validity of the MAOA-aggression link.

What dod Ethological explanations do?

They draw links between animal and human behaviour, on the basis of studying animals in their natural habitats.

What are the reasons for why the ethological perspective says that aggression is adaptive?

• Firstly, aggression increases the chance of survival of a species. Through appeasement following an aggressive confrontation, the ‘loser’ will seek out new territory, increasing the scope of the resources of the species and so increasing their chances of survival.

• Secondly, aggression acts as a method of increasing one’s social status within a hierarchy, as demonstrated by Pettit et al (1988) who found that young children use aggressive tactics in playgrounds to assert their authority, lead the others and have their way.

What are ritualistic behaviours?

A series of behaviours conducted in the same set order

What would the ritualistic behaviour be after an aggressive confrontation?

The ‘loser’ (through an act of appeasement) will make themselves vulnerable to the victor (e.g. wolves displaying their neck) as a sign of accepting defeat.

How are ritualist behaviours adaptive?

It ensures no further aggressive behaviour between the two, thus increasing the likelihood of survival of the species.

What do the physiological process of an innate-releasing mechanism (IRM) is activated by a release signal do?

They cause a cascade of the same series of behaviours, described as a fixed action pattern (FAP).

What does Lea characterise IRMs and FAPs as?

As being responsive to a releaser, ballistic, single-purpose, unaffected by learning, universal, and stereotyped.

What did Tinbergen (1951) find out about IRMs and FAPs?

He found that male sticklebacks will respond aggressively to model red spots (a releaser which triggers the IRM), regardless of whether the model resembles a stickleback or not.

What did the Goodall’s (2010) find out about ritualistic aggression?

She observed that chimpanzees in the Gombe Stream National Park found that rival communities slaughtered each other in a systematic fashion, despite appeasement and ritualistic signals being displayed by the victims.

This supports the idea that once a releaser has triggered the IRM, this will always lead to a FAP, and so the releaser is a stronger predictor of aggressive behavior than appeasement.

Why did Hunt (1973) describe FAPs as modal rather than fixed?

• The researcher provided evidence that the duration of each behavior within each FAP may vary between individuals as well as the specific other animal towards which it is targeted.

• Hence, environmental and social factors may have significant influences on the course of the FAP, resulting in lower validity of the universal nature of FAPs as part of an explanation for aggression.

What evidence supports the biological, innate basis of IRM and FAP systems.

• Researchers have pointed to Bremner’s work (1993) on the link between the MAOA activity and levels of aggression, as evidence for the heritability of IRM and FAP systems.

• This is due to aggressive behaviour being triggered by increased levels of testosterone, which must have been preceded by exposure to a releaser or signal, which had triggered the IRM. Therefore, the role of the limbic system and the IRM can be considered as valid explanations of aggression.

What is a human example of evolutionary aggression?

Sexual jealousy is stronger in males (compared to females) due to paternity uncertainty, which may lead to cuckoldry (i.e., a male raising a son who is not his own).

Why is sexual jealousy a evolutionary disadvantage?

Because the male wastes his resources, which he could have otherwise used to raise his own children. Therefore, anti-cuckoldry behaviours, in the form of male retentive strategies, are adaptive because they reduce the risk of cuckoldry.

What did Wilson and Daly (1966) find out about evolutionary explanations of human aggression?

They suggested that there are two types of male retention strategies: direct guarding (e.g., insisting on knowing where your partner is and who she is with) and negative inducements (e.g., threats of suicide to avoid infidelity).

What did Shackleford et al (2005) find out about male retention strategies?

He found that when 107 couples, who’d been married for less than a year, individually completed the Male Retention Inventory (husbands) and the Spouse Influence Report (wives), there was a positive correlation between increasing scores on these two measures, which translated to being an important predictor of the use of aggression in such married relationships.

Who supported Shackleford’s research?

Wilson et al (1995), who found that male retention strategies left 53% of respondents fearing for their lives.

What is an explanation for bullying and evolution in males?

Men who bullied other men through reinforcing a power imbalance were more likely to have their pick of resources and to mate with more females (due to the influence of fewer competing males), increasing the likelihood of their genes being passed on to as many offspring as possible.

What is an explanation for bullying and evolution in females?

Female bullying is more likely to occur within relationships to ensure fidelity (e.g., through threats or monitoring), as opposed to aiming to acquire new relationships (which is the male perspective). Therefore, the aggressive act of bullying may be considered as adaptive, as suggested by Volk et al (2012).

How can evolutionary theories can provide an explanation for gender differences in aggression?

• Campbell (1999) suggested that females are more likely to engage in acts of verbal, as opposed to physical, aggression, as this ensures that their own survival, as well as the survival of their offspring, is not endangered.

• Such tactics also prevent females from being involved in life-threatening physical confrontations with their partners and so further increase their chance of survival through the use of non-aggressive methods of resolving conflicts (Bess and Shackleford). This utility increases the validity of the evolutionary explanation of aggression.

Why are there methodological issues associated with the use of evolutionary theories to explain current examples of aggression?

• Predominantly, such studies are correlational, meaning that there is only a correlation between aggression and the use of male retention strategies. This means that the research may suffer from the ‘third factor problem’, where there may be a third contributory factor which has not been studied.

• These studies may also jump to make causal conclusions, when really, correlations can never demonstrate a ‘cause and effect’ relationship.

Which research supports the link between sexual jealousy and aggression?

• Shackleford’s 2005 study found that male retention strategies are a method of expressing sexual jealousy, which leads to aggressive behaviour both towards females and other partners.

• This increases the reliability of evolutionary theories as a method of explaining aggression due to this supporting evidence.

Why does Dollard (1939) suggest that frustration always leads to aggression, which is always the product of frustration (a converse argument?

The researchers suggested that frustration was a psychological drive, similar to the biological drive of hunger or thirst, which, when satisfied, results in drive reduction and a ‘balance’ has been restored to that individual.

Why might it not always be possible to achieve such task-reduction because the consequence of doing so may be too dangerous?

The aggression stemming from frustration is displaced onto another weaker and immediately available target in order to achieve drive reduction.

What did Geen et al (1968) test?

They tested this concept and studied male university students under 3 conditions while carrying out the task to complete a task

What happened in Geen et al (1968) study?

• Those who were insulted by confederates whilst doing so administered the strongest shocks, whereas those who simply found the puzzle impossible delivered the weakest shocks out of the experimental group, followed by the lowest levels being displayed by the non-frustrated control group.

• This supports Dollard’s original idea that frustration is displaced onto other targets when aggression cannot immediately be reduced through drive reduction.

What did Berkowitz (1989) do?

He did not take the same cathartic view as Dollard, as he believed that frustration only ‘readied’ a person to become aggressive, and that certain aggressive cues/environmental triggers were needed to initiate this reaction.

What did Berkowitz (1989) do in his study?

• He conducted a study which found that the presence of two guns influenced participants to administer electric shocks 1.4V higher to confederates who’d previously given participants electric shocks, compared to the control condition of having no guns.

• This supports Berkowitz’s original idea that frustration need not necessarily lead to aggression, but only in the presence of certain stimuli.

What did Dill and Anderson (1995) suggest?

Not all types of frustration are universal in leading to aggression, but that some types are more important than others.

What did Dill and Anderson (1965) find out?

• Unjustified aggression (such as a confederate rushing through an origami presentation because their girlfriend is waiting for them) has been proven to elicit more aggressive behaviour than justified aggression (such as a confederate rushing through an origami presentation because their boss told them to do so).

• Therefore, it is important to make the distinction between these different types of aggression and how they contribute to their development.

What is Berkowitz’s Negative Affect Theory?

There may be a more comprehensive explanation of aggression, as opposed to the original ‘readiness’ approach.

What does Berkowitz suggest?

• That aggression is only one of several stimuli which can trigger aggression, and so aggression is not always the consequence of frustration but just negative feelings in general (e.g., pain and jealousy).

• Conversely, this also means that such stimuli can lead to unpleasant consequences other than aggression (e.g., an individual feeling depressed and in despair upon losing their partner). This is positive because it means that current theories are accommodating new approaches to explaining all types of aggression.

What is the real life example of Berkowitz’s theory of negative affect theory?

• Some argue that guns should not be readily given to individuals and carried in public in plain sight because these guns may act as stimuli for aggressive behaviour.

• This is particularly the case when considering the results of Berkowitz’s original 1989 study!

What did Bandura suggest?

That learning is a social process and occurs through the observation and imitation of specific behaviours displayed by identified role models.

What is classical conditioning?

A learning process where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, eliciting a conditioned response. (Direct)

What is operant conditioning?

A learning process in which behaviours are modified through reinforcement or punishment. (Indirect)

What does reinforcement do?

It increases the likelihood that an observed behaviour, such as aggressive acts, will be repeated, while punishment decreases this likelihood.

What is vicarious reinforcement?

It occurs when we see a role model being rewarded for displaying certain types of behaviour.

What is an example of vicarious reinforcement?

The observer is then likely to imitate this modelled behaviour, as they are motivated to achieve the same reward. Self-efficacy can be used to assess the likelihood that carrying out this behaviour will result in this reward/desire consequence. An example may be a parent rewarding their son for acting protectively over their toys.

What are role models like?

They are likely to have desirable characteristics (e.g., wealth or popularity), be the same sex as the observer, and have high social status. Children choose role models through the process of identification.

What are the mediational (cognitive) processes which facilitate this learning and mediate between stimulus and response?

• Attention

• Retention

• Motor reproduction

• Motivation

What do the mediational processes demonstrate?

The learning and reproduction of behaviour do not need to occur at the same time.

What does Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment (1961) demonstrate?

That children observe and imitate behaviours displayed by same-sex role models.

How does Banduro’s experiment show role models?

When the adult was seen by the children as beating the Bobo doll with a mallet and being verbally abusive towards it, the children imitated such aggressive behaviours themselves. Children who’d observed a neutral or non-aggressive role model also copied such neutral and non-aggressive behaviours. This supports social learning theory as an explanation for aggression.

What is a major weakness of Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment and social learning theory as an explanation for aggression?

It does not take into account biological factors contributing to the fact that, regardless of the models, boys always behaved more aggressively than girls.

Why doesn’t the social learning theory take into account biological factors?

This may be due to boys having higher levels of testosterone compared to girls - this androgen has been associated with higher levels of aggression, as demonstrated by Virkkunen et al (1994). Therefore, this suggests that SLT is an incomplete explanation of aggression.

Why does Banduro’s bobo doll experiment lack mundane realism?

Since the purpose of the Bobo doll is to hit it and act aggressively towards it, the children may have done so because they believed that this was the expected behaviour. Therefore, the influence of modelling, imitation, and mediational processes may be very slight in this case of the development of aggression. Therefore, SLT may be a limited explanation for only some examples of aggression.

What is a practical application of comprehensive understanding of the role of SLT in the development of aggression?

The improvement of treatments for aggression in young children and adolescents

Why is the improvement of treatments for aggression in young children and adolescents a practical application?

• This is based on the idea of reciprocal inhibition, where individuals play an active role in their learning through the use of (cognitive) mediational processes. Thus, each individual operates on their environment, which in turn operates on them through the principle of reciprocal determinism.

• Therefore, this is useful in that it shows we have an influence over our learning, and so such learning of aggressive acts can be altered through the increasing use of compassionate and non-violent role models, particularly in the media.

What did Le Bon suggest about de-individuation?

It is characteristic of crowd or ‘group’ behaviour, where we feel no personal responsibility for our actions (diminished) because this responsibility is shared among the group. Likewise, we do not fear retaliation for such actions because we are just one anonymous face in a large crowd. This prevents our behaviour from being restricted by social norms.

What did Zimbardo suggest about social psychological explanations of aggression?

When we enter a group setting or crowd, our behaviour becomes anti-normative and disinhibited, as opposed to being restrained by social norms

What is the result of being anti-normative and disinhibited?

This means that laws and social norms no longer apply to our behaviour, as others cannot judge us when we are anonymous, nor will we face the consequences of our behaviour, as supported by Dixon and Mahendran (2012).

Why is being anti-normative and disinhibited a consequence of anonimity?

As opposed to the anonymity itself, that allows us to develop either private self-awareness (we become less aware of our own beliefs and opinions because the larger group is more important) or public self-awareness (the anonymity means that we will not face retribution or judgements from others).

How did Dodd (1985) provide support for the idea that anonymity allows us to act beyond social norms and laws?

Through the mechanism of de-individuation and changing levels of self-awareness

What evidence did Dodd (1985) find out about how anonymity allows us to act beyond social norms and laws?

He found that, if given free rein over any events and remaining anonymous whilst doing so, 36% of 226 psychology undergraduates would behave in an antisocial manner, while only 9% would act righteously (e.g., helping the poor).

What is a practical application associated with an improved understanding of de-individuation?

Douglas and McGarty (2001)

What did Douglas and McGarty (2001) find?

These researchers found that, within studies of chatroom activities, the most violent and aggressive messages were sent by those who concealed their identities. This supports the idea that de-individuation may lead to a diminished feeling of one’s own responsibility for their actions, resulting in increased disinhibition and aggression.

What might de-individuation do?

It might place too much emphasis on group dynamics affecting the group as a whole, rather than changes that an individual can make to decrease their feelings of self-awareness

How can de-individuation place too much emphasis on group dynamics affecting the group as a whole, rather than changes that an individual can make to decrease their feelings of self-awareness?

Through the use of a uniform

What did Johnson and Downing (1979) find?

They found that participants who were dressed in a KKK uniform were significantly more aggressive and delivered higher-intensity electric shocks to confederates compared to those dressed as nurses. This suggests that the social roles associated with uniforms are emphasised, and not lost, within a group setting.

What did Le Bon and Dodd overemphasise?

The importance of de-individuation and diminished responsibility as an explanation for aggression

What did Spears and Lea (1992) find out about the importance of de-indivduation?

• Their Social Identity model of De-Individuation Effects suggests that a shift of focus/ attention from oneself as an individual, to one’s part as part of a larger anonymous group causes conformity to the established norms of behaviour within the group, which may be prosocial or antisocial.

• Therefore, this suggests that de-individuation is only a partial explanation for aggression, and that an individual’s private and public self-awareness are far more important processes.

What did Irwin and Cressey (1962) propose?

A dispositional explanation for aggression in the form of the ‘importation model’

What is the importation model?

This model suggests that aggression is caused by individual differences between offenders, rather than the prison context

What did Thomas and McManimon (2005) suggest?

They suggested that prison offenders will behave in the same way within prison as in the ‘real world’ due to their dispositions (e.g., drug abuse, childhood trauma, economic poverty, etc.). These characteristics will predispose them to use aggression to navigate their way around the prison social hierarchy, and not be challenged for doing so because aggression is part of the ‘prison subculture’.

What did DeLisi et al (2011) provide evidence for?

These concepts and found that certain dispositional traits, such as childhood trauma and irritability, coincided with an increased risk of violent behaviour and suicide in a group of 813 juvenile offenders when compared to a control group. Therefore, this suggests that dispositional traits, as opposed to the prison environment, may be a more important predictor of aggression.

What is the opposite of a dispositional explanation?

The situational model deprivation model, as suggested by Clemmer (1958)