Aggression Flashcards
hostile aggression
reactive and angry, with the intention of causing harm
instrumental aggression
deliberate and designed to achieve an aim (planned)
violent aggression
using physical force to cause physical injury to another person (eg. punching, kicking)
verbal aggression
using words to cause psychological damage to another person (eg. gossiping, shouting)
cognitive priming for aggression
cues in the environment can trigger schema that contain cognitive scripts for aggression
cues can include:
- watching a violent, aggressive film
- playing violent video games
- a picture of war/ weapons
below awareness
subconscious priming
hostile attribution bias and aggression
- someone with HAB is likely to automatically see aggressive intent in the actions of others
- therefore, more likely to respond with aggression
cognitive scripts and schema (aggression)
- if someone experiences a lot of violence throughout their life, then their schema will be biased towards aggression
- people with aggressive schema may also have cognitive scripts that lead them to aggression
conformity - aggression
- if someone joins a group that is violent and aggressive, they are more likely to be violent and aggressive
- stereotypes of some social groups can mean aggressive violence is expected of them (self-fulfilling prophecy)
desensitisation - influence of the media
if you consume a lot of violent media, or are exposed to a lot of violence in your life, then you become desensitised to it. this means you experience less arousal for aggression and are less likely to be empathetic to victims
disinhibition - influence of the media
after viewing violent media, people are less likely to think that aggression is inherently bad
direct learning
due to their life experiences, individuals become conditioned to give an aggressive response
indirect learning
people learn to be aggressive from observing the aggression of others
operant conditioning
aggression can be learned directly through operant conditioning
positive reinforcement
aggressive behaviours are mostly acquired and maintained through positive reinforcement bc aggression is an effective way of gaining rewards
tangible rewards
money, food and other physically ‘real’ rewards
intangible rewards
pleasurable feelings and social status
vicarious reinforcement
- observer experiences the model’s reward ‘second-hand’, but this is enough to increase the likelihood that the observer will imitate the model’s behaviour
- but, if the aggression is punished, the observer learns that it’s not effective in gaining a reward and the likelihood of imitation is reduced
evolution and aggression
- aggressive behaviour provides an evolutionary advantage in ‘survival in the fittest’
- human males who were aggressive were more likely to survive in the past
- therefore, they were more likely to have the better resources and more likely to mate (passing on their genes)
amygdala
- if someone has an abnormally small amygdala, they’re more likely to interpret situations as hostile and to react aggressively/ violently
limbic system
processes emotions
pre-frontal cortex
impulsive behaviour
damage to brain structures
can lead to aggression
high levels of testosterone
high levels of aggression and competetiveness
low levels of serotonin
- lower emotional stability
- leading to impulsive behaviours, including aggression
high dopamine
higher levels of aggression
low cortisol
higher levels of aggression in men (this is because high cortisol blocks the effects of testosterone)
genetics and aggression
- aggression can be inherited
if you have an aggressive parent, you’re more likely to be aggressive too
MAOA gene
if you inherit the low-activity version of the MAOA gene then you’re likely to be highly aggressive
the SRY gene and aggression
- it has an indirect influence on aggression through masculinisation of the embryo
- the gene activates testes development that triggers testosterone production in the womb
