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aggression Flashcards

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1
Q

biological explanations of aggression

A

genetic influence
limbic system
testosterone
serotonin

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2
Q

genetic influence

A

species selectively bread to give aggressive individuals

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3
Q

which is a specie selectively bread to be aggressive in past

A

doberman guard dogs

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4
Q

research on genetic influence

A

3586 pair of twins (born between 1881 and 1910

  • 926 had criminal activity
  • in males mz:21% concordance dz:12%
  • in females mz:12% dz:8%
  • there is a genetic factor, not 100% other factors
  • mz treated mor alike
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5
Q

specific gene causing aggression

A

MAOA gene

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6
Q

what does MAOA stands for

A

monoamine oxidase A (enzyme)

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7
Q

outline MAOA

A

enzyme processes neurotransmitters
MAOA gene controls MAOA (enzyme) production
-low levels of MAOA (and therefore serotonin) linked to aggressive behaviour

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8
Q

who did discover the MAOA gene influence, how

A

brunner et all in a dutch family during a research

  • several male showed impulsive aggression and violent crime
  • a fault in MAOA gene was identified and wasn’t present in other family members
  • they were deficient in MAOA
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9
Q

other research in MAOA gene

A

knokout study- bred to miss gene

adult male mice missing MAOA gene had specific behaviours patterns including aggression.

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10
Q

outline serotonin theory

A

serotonin is a neurotransmitter thought to inhibit aggression

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11
Q

how are level of serotonin activity measured

A

in turn over- amount produced and broken down

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12
Q

lower turnover leads to

A

more aggressive behaviour

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13
Q

outline 2 animal studies in serotonin expalnation

A

49 rhesus monkeys observed for four years
the lower turnover the more aggressive
many with low turnover died

mice breed to have low serotonin turnover were more aggressive when isolated

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14
Q

diets study in serotonin explanation

A

serotonin made of amino acid, healthy males showed increased aggression 5\6 hours after a tryptophan-free mixture of amino acids (decrease serotonin)

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15
Q

what amino acid serotonin is made of

A

tryptophan

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16
Q

limitations of serotonin explanation

A

-animal studies, doesn’t mean is causal, can’t generalise to humans
-diets don’t directly link serotonin to aggression
-lab studies, low ecological validity
natural experiments show a more complicated relationship
-20 arsonist 10 healthy volunteers serotonin turnovers significantly lower but didn’t correlate with severity, link to impulsive behaviour suggested
-convicted criminals studies can’t be generalised

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17
Q

outline limbic system explanation

A

limbic system sand temporal lobe linked to aggression

  • in particular amygdala in limbic system has a strong link
  • electriacal stimulation of amygdala can cause\reduce aggression
  • amygdala lesions : in cat cause attack in dog cause submission
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18
Q

support in limbic system explanation

A

charles whitman killed 14 innocents

-autopsy found a tumor in temporal lobe pushing on amygdala

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19
Q

disconnecting amygdala from brain

A

amygdalotomy

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20
Q

research on amygadalotomy found

A

aggressive behaviour decreased between 33% and 100%

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21
Q

evaluation of genetic explanation

A

positive
-twins\adoption\knokout studies suggest a genetic component
-research found that low MAOA activity had significant effect on men maltreated as children - interaction with environment
negative
-ignores social and environmental factors
-meta-analysis found weak correlation between genetic factors and crime

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22
Q

what is testosterone

A

androgen hormone responsible of male characteristics

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23
Q

outline testosterone theory

A
  • man produce more than woman and are statically more violent than women (arrested for violence)
  • indicates a relationship
  • higer testosterone found in prisoners convicted of violent crime, lowest in in non convicted of violent crime
  • correlational
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24
Q

research in testosterone

A

35 female-to-male 15 male-to-female transsexual

  • questionnaire to asset how likely they were to be aggressive
  • hormone treatment (androgen or anti-androgen) x3 months
  • female-to-male increased
  • male-to-female decreased
  • can establish cause and effect
  • self report can be subjective and people might be conforming to stereotypes
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25
Q

evolutionary explanation outline

A
  • aggressioni in an adaptive response

- inherited because helped to survive and reproduce

26
Q

adaptive function of aggression

A
  • gain status\dominance in a group
  • gain resources from others (territory,mate)
  • in defense (losing resources\status, being injured\killed)
  • deter infidelity in long term mates
27
Q

research in evolutionary explanation

A

wilson and dali Detroit murders majority on predators and victims were young men
-man faced most competition to access fertile mates, different psychological response
buss et al- cross cultural questionnaire
-hypothetical scenario
-51% of man prefers emotional infidelity to sexual
against 22% of women
-male - parernity
-female - resources available for children

28
Q

what is ethology

A

study of naturally occurring animal behaviour across species

29
Q

ethological approach, who used it

A

Lorenz

30
Q

how does Lorenz define aggression?

A

fighting instinct towards members of own specie

and defines it as an adaptive response

31
Q

how does Lorenz explain aggression using ethology?

A

aggression is described as an innate tendency triggered by environmental stimuli

  • urge ro be aggressive builds up continuously increasing internal pressure
  • the strength of stimuli needed decreases as the pressure increases, if very high aggression can be triggered spontaneously
  • stimulus triggered an innate release mechanism with fixed action patterns and instinctive behaviour identical across species
  • ritualised, released harmlessly to avoid extinction; wolves show jugular vein humans use sport.
32
Q

research on innate release mechanism

A

red-bellied fish (during breeding season) show aggression with bright red stimuli
-innate release mechanism

33
Q

evaluation of evolutionary explanation of aggression

A

positive
-link to genetics
negative
-cultural differences, different rates of husbands filling wife, if inherited it would be consistent
-difficult to prove and research, lack validity
-needs socially sensitive research, aggression can appear acceptable

34
Q

evaluation ethological theory

A

positive
-it does occur in fixed patterns
-explains why human kill each other, without weapons wasn’t lethal
negative
-states that behaviour is universal but animals studies can’t be generalised, human react differently
-doesn’t explain aggression that isn’t an immediate response (premeditated murder)
-watching aggressive sport can make you more aggressive - not ritualised

35
Q

how does Kendra cherry define aggression?

A

psychological harm to oneself others or objects in the environment
can be expressed: verbally, mentally, physically

36
Q

which are the social explanations of aggression?

A

frustration-aggression model (social psychological explanation)
social learning theory
deindividuation

37
Q

who proposed frustration-aggression model?

A

dollar

38
Q

outline frustration-aggression model

A

-aggression is always a result of frustration (interference with reaching a goal)
-frustration always leads to aggression (behaviour or feeling aggressive)
-strength of aggression determined by degree of frustration:
how much you want to reach the goal
how close you are
how much you’ve been set back
-fear of punishment can inhibit aggressive behaviour towards the source of frustration and be displaced into something else.

39
Q

evaluation of frustration-aggression model

A

positive
-confederate pushing in front of participants in a queue, the closer to the front the more aggressive
-buss found that frustrated students were slightly more aggressive than control group
negative
-evidence in contradictory buss also found in a later study no link between frustration and aggression.
-could be leading in aggression in frustration is seen as an attack, participants respond less aggressively if given a reasonable explanation.

40
Q

revision of frustration-aggression model

A

by Berkowitz

  • aggressive cues hypothesis
  • frustration gives the readiness to be aggressive but behaviour is trigged by environmental cues
  • pps given electric shock and one of either gun, racket, no object. the one with the weapon were the more aggressive
41
Q

outline social learning theory to explain aggression

A
  • aggressive behaviour is learned by aggressive role models
  • reinforcement
  • Bandura, vicarious reinforcement variation
42
Q

deindividuation to explain aggression

A
  • when an individual is part of a group/crowd aggression is more likely because s/he experiences a loss of their sense of identity
  • coined by Festinger 1952
  • disinhibited when anonymous, feel less personal responsibility, less fear of disapproval
43
Q

real life application for deindividuation + evaluation

A
  • football
  • London roots 2011
  • mullen studied Lynch mod violence in the US, more people more violence
  • religious festivals, crowds having good behaviours, might just be conformity
  • Zimbardo, sunglasses
44
Q

social learning theory 4 steps

A

1.observation - role models
2.attention
3.retention - motivation: reinforcement (positive/negative)
(vicarious/direct)
4.imitation - identification

45
Q

what does institutional aggression mean?

which approaches do explain it?

A
  • aggression within an institutional environment

- dispositional explanation and situational explanation

46
Q

how does dispositional explanation explain institutional aggression

A
  • the importation model

- inmates import characteristics and social norms from life outside (e.g. norms of criminal gangs)

47
Q

research in dispositional explanation of institutional aggression

A

58 males prisoners
violent behaviour higher in black inmates
drug offences higher in white inmates
supports because reflects American society
androcentric

48
Q

how does situational explanation explain institutional aggression?

A

the deprivation model

  • conditions in prisons cause stress (overcrowding) this can lead to aggression
  • deprivation of freedom, comfort, security, friendship, loss of autonomy
49
Q

research support in situational explanation for institutional aggression

A

study in Americans inmates

crowding correlated to aggression

50
Q

what type of institutional aggression could importation and deprivation model explain

A

importation: violence towards inmates
deprivation: towards prison staff

51
Q

which was the massacre linked to violent computer games?

A

Columbine high school 1999

2 students

52
Q

how could computer games influence aggression?

A

characters rewarded, vicarious reinforcement

53
Q

meta analysis on media study

A

217 studies found significant correlation

higher in men (identification?)

54
Q

limitation on media influence experiments

A

lab experiments

low ecological

55
Q

agains media influence

A

children (3 to 8 yo) in st.helena (island) studied before and after television
-slight decrease in anti-social behaviour in post-television group

56
Q

what can violence in media cause?

A

desensitisation
disinhibition
catharsis
cognitive priming

57
Q

describe desensitisation caused by media

A

repeated exposure to violence in media reduces emotional response and anxiety reaction

58
Q

describe disinhibition caused by media

A

repeated exposure to violence in media destroys inhibitions

aggression seems acceptable

59
Q

describe catharsis caused by media

A

use of the media to release emotion by identifying them selves in aggressive characters

60
Q

describe cognitive priming caused by media

A

cues associated with violence in media trigger aggression in real life

  • violent material is stored in memory and is connected to other violent memories
  • association may lead to aggressive behaviour

aqa psychology (8 decks)

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