Psychology - aggression

Neural explanation for aggression - limbic system AO1

Amygdala detects fear (fight or flight)

In majority of people amygdala works properly and detects fear accurately, initiating an appropriate response to a stimulus

If amygdala damaged it will misinterpret information and respond with overly aggressive behaviour

Neural explanation for aggression - limbic system AO3

+Raine - scanned brains of 41 murderers and 41 controls - some murderers were found to have abnormalities in the way their limbic system functioned, suggesting a link between these limbic abnormalities and increased aggression. Scientific as used PET scans

However, Raine himself had this anomaly but was not a murderer himself, therefore, this research doesn’t establish cause and effect

+Sumer (2007) - case study of a 14 year old girl who exhibited severe aggressive behavior. Brain scan revealed she had a brain tumour in the limbic system. When treated with drugs, she became less aggressive. Suggesting that her aggression correlated with abnormalities in her limbic system, providing further evidence for the role of this brain region in regulating aggressive behavior.

However, as this is a case study, it limits the generalisability of the findings, as individual cases may not represent broader patterns of aggression in the population, due to external factors such as age (puberty) or gender.

+Reductionist - can establish cause and effect between 1 part of the limbic system and aggression

However, it may be oversimplified as it overlooks the complexity of human behavior, as aggression may also be influenced by social, environmental, and psychological factors, as well as a possible interaction between components. Therefore a more holistic approach may be more appropriate

Neural explanation for aggression - serotonin AO1

Serotonin - has a calming inhibitory effect on neural firing in prefrontal cortex (PFC responsible for impulse inhibition = ability to resist urge to be aggressive)

Low levels of serotonin had been linked to increased aggression as it reduces the ability to control aggressive impulses and may lead to impulsive behaviours.

Neural explanation for aggression - serotonin AO3

+Mann et al - drug which reduces serotonin given to 35 healthy adults and found that levels of aggression increased after using drug (correlational data)

However, he used a small male sample meaning it may lack some validity as other factors may impact aggression for example testosterone or it being more socially acceptable for men to be aggressive in public

+Berman et al - drug increases serotonin (paroxetine) and found that it reduced aggression - participants took part in a lab based game in which varying intensities of electric shocks were given - those with drug gave fewer shocks than placebo group (correlational data)

+Virkkunen - compared levels of serotonin breakdown product in cerebrospinal fluid in impulsive offenders and non-impulsive offenders. Levels were lower in impulsive offenders. Therefore reinforcing that low serotonin is linked to aggression and impulsive behaviours.

However, can’t measure serotonin directly meaning the measurement is inaccurate

Hormonal explanation for aggression - testosterone AO1

Hormones = chemicals that regulate and control physiological processes

Testosterone - predominantly male hormone - linked to aggressive behaviour

Changes in testosterone levels influence aggressive behaviour by increasing amygdala reactivity during a social threat - increased testosterone levels also reduce levels of serotonin, furthering aggression

Hormonal explanation for aggression - testosterone AO3

+Dabbs et al investigated relationship between testosterone, crime and prison behaviour - measured testosterone levels in saliva of 692 adult male prisoners - those who committed crimes involving violence had higher testosterone levels and violated more prison rules than those who committed burglary and theft - showing a link between higher testosterone levels and aggression

+Carre and Olmstead - claim that testosterone concentrations are not static but fluctuate in the context of social environments. Changes in testosterone levels appear to influence aggressive behaviours by increasing amygdala reactivity during the process of social threat

+Albert et al found that prison inmates showed a positive correlation between high levels of testosterone and self reported levels of aggression

However, no correlation was found between testosterone and actual violent behaviour among male prison inmates

-doesn’t establish cause and effect - may be other factors causing aggression

Ethological explanation of aggression - AO1

Ethology - study of animal behaviour in natural settings

This explanation suggests that aggression is adaptive and promotes survival - help distribute individuals within a group to maximise efficiency (defeated animals are rarely killed and they establish territory elsewhere, meaning the species spreads out = less competition over resources)

Innate releasing mechanism = a biological structure or process in the brain which is activated by an external stimulus that in turn triggers a fixed action pattern - it acts as release for the animal, then the drive builds up until next aggressive act

Fixed action pattern = a universal sequence of stereotyped pre-programmed behaviours triggered by an innate releasing mechanism - e.g. male sticklebacks

Stickleback fish - nest in spring, females stay by the nest so they can lay eggs and males establish territory around the nest so other males don’t invade. TINBERGEN - 3 models: 1 female lifelike (no red), 1 thin simple with red underbelly, 1 wider simple with red underbelly - males attacked ones with red underbelly - aggression = adaptive and universal (link to AO3 - supports idea of FAp and IRM is why species is aggressive)

Ethological explanation of aggression - AO3

+Sackett - monkeys reared in isolation provided with pictures of monkeys playing, exploring and in threatening poses. As baby monkeys matured they displayed reactions to the pictures of baby monkeys in threatening poses - suggesting an innate mechanism to detect threat = aggressive behaviour

However, generalising animal research to humans is problematic - different environments raised in

-explanation not universal which is a key aspect of the theory - humans react differently in same situations - humans don’t have IRM and FAP

-Nisbett - doesn’t account for cultural differences - North South divide in USA for homicide rates - killing more common by white men in Southern states compared to North - Nisbett suggested it was due to a ‘culture of honour’ in southern states - culture can override innate influences

Evolutionary explanation of aggression - AO1

Reproductive challenges faced by ancestors can explain aggression - men see other men as competition for food, territory and females = aggressive behaviour towards other men to allow for more chance on their own reproduction.

Parental uncertainty - a man can never be certain that he is the father of his wife’s children unless he prevents her having relationships with other men - male sexual jealousy is therefore a cause of domestic violence (aggression) - Buss argued that males developed strategies for mate retention (how men act around women so they stay around) e.g. direct guarding (restricting her movements) and negative inducements to prevent her straying (financial control, threat of violence if they’re unfaithful etc.)

Infidelity (cheating) and jealousy - Daly and Wilson - men have evolved strategies to deter partners from cheating (ranging from vigilance to violence - Uxoricide = killing wife unintentionally ) - these are a results of sexual jealousy and parental uncertainty. Cuckoldry - unwittingly invest resources in rearing children that are not his own - male sexual jealousy may have evolved to prevent this

Women are more concerned with emotional infidelity (partner loving someone else) - lose access to resources

Evolutionary explanation of aggression - AO3

+Shackleford - study examined intimate partner violence in heterosexual couples - men and women in 107 married couples completed different questionnaires - men = mate retention inventory, women = spouse influence report (violence) - positive correlation found between mate retention behaviours and husband violence - suggests retention behaviours and reliable predictors of aggressive behaviour, supporting the ideas that reproduction and evolutionary factors explain aggressive behaviours

+Anne Campbell - female with offspring motivated to be less aggressive because such behaviour would put hers and her child’s survival at risk - verbal aggression is more adaptive to avoid threatening physical aggression - ability to explain gender differences increases validity of explanation

+Real life application - Volk - anti-bullying interventions need to increase costs of bullying and reward prosocial alternatives (e.g. competing aggressively but fairly in sporting activities - gives them an opportunity to display prowess and strength - feel powerful without need to bully)

-However - doesn’t account for modern life - single parents, adoption, homosexual relationships don’t fit with explanation - adoption = cuckoldry by choice

Social psychological explanation for aggression - frustration aggression hypothesis AO1

Frustration-aggression hypothesis - aggression is the result of being prevented from achieving ones goals, leading to frustration/aggression to be displaced onto a less anxiety provoking substitute - cathartic (scapegoating)

Factors that influence likelihood of aggression:

proximity to goal - Harris tested whether proximity was a key factor - people nearer front of the queue more likely to be aggressive if people pushed in
whether aggression will remove barrier causing frustration
If the act is justified - if not justified more aggression

Social psychological explanation for aggression - frustration aggression hypothesis AO3

+Marcus-Newhall et al (she) - conducted meta analysis of 49 studies of displaced aggression (studies investigated situations in which aggressive behaviour had to be directed against a target other than the one that caused frustration - researchers concluded displaced aggression is a reliable phenomenon - participants who were provoked but unable to retaliate directly against the source of frustration were significantly more likely to be aggressive against innocent party of people - exactly the predicted outcome by frustration aggression hypothesis)

+Russel Green - lab experiment where he asked male undergraduate students to undertake a jigsaw puzzle in 3 different conditions to increase frustration: unattainable time limit to complete, jigsaw impossible to complete and confederate issuing derogatory remarks to students. In 2nd part of study, participants could give shocks to confederate ADD MORE

-Bushman - aggression as result of frustration is not cathartic - participants vented anger by repeatedly hitting punching bag became more angry and aggressive rather than less - doing nothing was more effective at reducing aggression. Outcome of study is very different to what the hypothesis suggests - casts doubt on validity of hypothesis

Social psychological explanation for aggression - de-individuation AO1

De-individuation - Term first coined by Festinger - how behaviour changes once in a group, due to personal consequences for their actions being diminished - ‘cloak of anonymity’ - evaluation of actions can be lowered by:

masks
darkness
loss of identity (facelessness and anonymity)
drugs
alcohol

Zimbardo - larger the group the more faceless you become

Zhong - mirrored sunglasses make people feel greater anonymity and increase sense of de-individuation

Social psychological explanation for aggression - de-individuation AO3

+Zimbardo - 2 conditions of identifiable and unidentifiable women - asked to deliver shocks to aid learning - those with hoods and no tags held shock buttons for twice as long as the identifiable group.

+Rehm et al - supports Zimbardo - 30 games of handball - orange shirts against own shirts - orange shirts more aggressive = de-individuation through anonymity lead to more aggressive acts

-Johnson and Downing - groups don’t always lead to antisocial behaviour - depends on situation. Deindividuation can lead to prosocial behaviour as well as aggressive behaviour - normative cues influence outcome

-Gergen et al - participants unknown to each other put in a dark room for an hour and told they could do whatever they liked - one condition told they would never meet and other told they would meet after - in both there was kissing and intimacy (in C2 much less) but not aggressive as explanation suggests

+real life application - Mann - baiting crowd of suicide jumpers - Mann analysed 21 jumps in US - 10/21 where a crowd was watching, baiting had occurred - tended to occur at night when crowd was large and further away - state of de-individuation - applied to modern day situation - online trolls as anonymous on the internet

Social Learning theory explanation for aggression - AO1

Aggression is caused by observation and imitation of an aggressive act due to 4 mediational processes (attention, retention, reproduction, motivation)

attention and retention: aggressive acts are usually quite noticeable and memorable which gives them attention and retentions
reproduction: one must have strength/ability to perform motor skills
motivation: could come from role model or vicarious reinforcement e.g. older student bullying younger student - modelling - could gain respect of other students, or they may laugh

Social Learning theory explanation for aggression - AO3

+Bandura’s bobo doll - 3 conditions of positive, negative reinforcement and punishment. Once model left the children displayed similar behaviour to what they had seen ADD MORE. Boys more aggressive if model was male - supporting idea of identification- shows role of mediational processes in aggression

-Bandura lacks realism - doll not living so won’t respond when hit - raises questions about validity and about the imitations of aggression towards other human beings

+Poulin and Boivan - aggressive boys between 9 and 12 found aggressive friends - described cliques as ‘training grounds’ for antisocial behaviour due to mutual reinforcement between them - boys used alliances with each other to gain resources through aggressive behaviour - constantly exposed to models of aggression and positive consequences of it - precisely conditions under which SLT predicts that aggressive behaviour would occur

+Real life application - ACT Raising Safe kids Program - developed by APA violence prevention office teaches positive parenting skills to parents and caregivers of children from birth to age of 8 - helps parents understand that children learn from imitation and observation and what adults say and do to children or in front of them can have an impact on their development

Institutional explanation for aggression - disposition AO1

Dispositional (individualistic) - behaviour is due to ‘a few bad apples’ and not due to the situation - aggression in prison is due to personalities of individual inmates rather than the situation they have been put in

Irwin and Cressey ‘importation model’ - interpersonal violence in prisons not a product of the institution itself but rather the characteristics of individuals who enter such institutions such as their beliefs, values and norms

3 types of subculture:

Criminal - follow norms associated with being a thief or criminal e.g. not betraying each other, being trustworthy among other criminals - they have a ‘code of honour’

Straight - tends to be one-time offenders - not part of criminal subculture before institution - reject groups in the prison and identify more with prison officers and staff - not aggressive in prison
Convict - raised in prison system - look for positions of power/influence within system - most likely to turn to aggression - influenced by deprivation prior to being imprisoned and bring values of subculture inside with them - ‘gang culture’

Institutional explanation for aggression - disposition AO3

+Keller and Wang - research evidence - high security prisons statistically have higher levels of assault on staff by inmates - suggests that it is the personality of inmates (which led them to be put in high security prison) which leads to the aggression

+Delisi - 813 juveniles and studied the negative dispositional factors such as childhood trauma, history of abuse and high levels of anger - inmates were more likely to take part in sexual misconduct and suicidal activity - individual characteristics may lead to more aggressive outcomes

-Sykes - deprivations experienced by prisoners due to situation are more likely to be the cause of aggressive behaviour in prisoners - Cunningham - analysed 35 inmate homicides in Texas prisons and found that motivation for behaviours were linked to some of the deprivations identified by Skyes including fights over personal belongings and homosexual relationships - supports situational explanation (setting rather than person) casting doubt over importation model

-perhaps the interactionist stance is a better way to consider why aggression occurs in prisons - Dobbs and Waid suggest that deprivation model will lead to violence when combined with individual characteristics imported into the prison by inmates and which also influence prison culture - using this model helps us understand that institutional aggression is a complex matter and a more holistic approach may give a deeper understanding

Institutional explanation for aggression - situational AO1

Aggression occurs as a results of the setting rather than the person

Sykes identified 5 deprivations that arise from the degradations suffered by becoming an inmate, which can cause aggression:

Deprivation of autonomy - prisoners have no power and few choices to make and are told what to do - leads to feelings of helplessness - leads to frustration and in turn aggression
Deprivation of liberty - prisoners have to ask before they sleep, eat, shower etc. as well as wear uniform
Deprivation of goods and services - inmates don’t have the ‘stuff’ we expect in the free world - some people think prison is structured to make people live in near poverty - sense of failure may lead to aggression. Inmates also fight over goods = aggression
Deprivation of heterosexual relationships - many straight men find female companionship to be part of their identity and being denied this reduces sense of self worth which could lead to aggression. Also opportunities for homosexual behaviour may lead to anxieties for some prisoners - leading to aggression perhaps as a defense
Security - some prisoners fear for their safety - heightened sense of threat can lead to aggression

Institutional explanation for aggression - situational AO3

+Cunningham et al - analysed 35 inmate homicides in Texas prisons and found that motivation for behaviours were linked to some of the deprivations identified by Skyes including fights over personal belongings and homosexual relationships - supports situational explanation that it is setting rather than person - increasing validity of theory

-Hensley - research evidence - loss of heterosexual relationships is not a cause for aggression - 256 male and female inmates of 2 prisons in Mississippi which allowed visits from partners (specifically to have sex) - no link found between involvement in visits and reduced aggressive behaviour - suggesting situational factors may not be the only reason for aggression

-alternative theory suggests it may be about the person - dispositional causes suggest that behaviour may be due to ‘a few bad apples’ not due to situation - Irwin and Cressey ‘importation model’ - interpersonal violence in prisons not a product of the institution itself but rather the characteristics of individuals who enter such institutions such as their beliefs, values and norms - Delisi - 813 juveniles and studied the negative dispositional factors such as childhood trauma, history of abuse and high levels of anger - inmates were more likely to take part in sexual misconduct and suicidal activity - individual characteristics influence aggression - not just situational

Media as an explanation for aggression (all)- AO1

People playing games may receive positive reinforcement which could reinforce violent behaviour in real life. Exposure to violence may affect moral judgement - however some argue it is an outlet for anger and helps relieve stress - cathartic

Desensitisation - exposure to aggression leads to a decrease in fear/anxiety and sensitivity to aggressive behaviour - more exposure to violence the less it has an impact - reduces moral behaviour and cognitive/emotional responses - more likely to lead to aggressive behaviour

Disinhibition - unrestrained behaviour - when playing computer games behaviour that is usually restrained is demonstrated - ordinarily an individual would not act this way but the feeling of being ‘caught up’ in the media means they exhibit more aggressive behaviours because it changes the standards of what is considered acceptable

Cognitive priming - when a stimulus acts as a trigger for thoughts and ideas - exposure to cues on TV/computer games act as a trigger for behaviour as they arouse thoughts and ideas about aggression - frequent activation of aggressive thoughts through prolonged exposure may result in threshold for activation of aggressive thoughts being lowered (=more easily activated) = more aggression

Media as an explanation for aggression - Desensitisation, cognitive priming, computer games AO3

Media as an explanation for aggression - disinhibition AO3

+Berkowitz and Alioto - lab experiment where participants saw a film depicting aggression as vengeance gave more electric shocks of longer duration to a confederate - propose that aggression more likely to occur if viewed aggression is seen as an acceptable response and disinhibition more likely to occur

+According to SLT aggression is only partially carried out by media models and that aggressive behaviour is seen as social norm and so has become disinhibited rather than children learning specific behaviours that they see

-failed to consider other variables known to have an impact such as mental health and family violence. As a result this correlational data …