Copy of See Aggression, Do Aggression Article
Overview of Aggression Research
Aggression: A major social problem in current times and a heavily researched topic in psychology.
Variability in definitions: Different social psychologists may offer various definitions of aggression.
Sources of Human Aggression
Historical focus: Understanding why individuals engage in aggressive behavior.
Theoretical perspectives:
Biological predisposition: Suggests violent urges build over time.
Situational factors: Emphasize repeated frustration as a key cause.
Learning theory: Aggression is learned behavior through observation/interaction.
The Bobo Doll Experiment
Conducted by Albert Bandura & associates (1961) at Stanford University.
Focus: Demonstrates learning of aggression through observation.
Social Learning Theory: Suggests personality development occurs through interactions with others.
Theoretical Propositions of Bandura's Study
**Key predictions: **
Children exposed to aggressive models will imitate aggression in a different setting.
Children exposed to nonaggressive models will exhibit reduced aggression compared to those with no models.
Same-sex models will be imitated more than opposite-sex models.
Boys are more likely than girls to imitate aggression, especially if exposed to male models.
Methodology of the Experiment
Subjects
Participants: 36 boys and 36 girls aged 3-6.
Control group: 24 children, no model exposure.
Experimental Conditions
Division: Groups categorized into aggressive and nonaggressive models, controlled for gender and modeling dynamics.
Experimental Procedure
Initial setup: Each child was introduced to a play area with models showcasing either aggressive or nonaggressive behaviors.
Aggressive condition: Model acted violently towards a Bobo doll.
Nonaggressive condition: Model ignored the Bobo doll and played quietly.
Arousal of Anger or Frustration
To encourage aggressive behaviors, children were frustrated after playing with appealing toys, told they were for other children.
Testing for Imitation of Aggression
Final room contained aggressive and non-aggressive toys.
Behavioral measures recorded included:
Imitation of physical aggression.
Imitation of verbal aggression.
Other forms of aggression.
Results Summary
Support for hypotheses:
Children exposed to aggressive models imitated more violent behaviors (38.2 instances for boys vs. 12.7 for girls).
Gender differences observed: Boys influenced more by male aggressive models.
Uncertain results for nonaggressive model's inhibiting effect.
Discussion Points
Bandura concluded that children learn violent behaviors through observation without reinforcement.
Influence of male models on boys more significant due to social perceptions of aggression as a masculine behavior.
Subsequent Research Impact
Bandura's findings have relevance in discussions about media violence and its effects on children.
Demonstrated how observed aggression can translate into real-world actions.
Recent Applications
U.S. Congress focused on media violence due to continued concerns.
Research links childhood exposure to media violence with adult aggression.
Responses from broadcasters to mitigate media violence and its effects.
Growing evidence indicates that media violence impacts childhood behavior into adulthood.