aggression: hormones Flashcards
what are hormones
chemical messengers that travel in the blood stream
how do hormones work
- bind to the target cell and change its function
- tested via the blood and through saliva samples
what is the role of testosterone
- regulates the sex drive
- males produce more than females do
- has a role in bone mass, muscle mass and strength
- secreted via the testes
- also produced in women but in lower amounts
what is the link between testosterone and aggression?
- increased testosterone = increased aggression
- testosterone can lead to increased reactivity to amygdalas rage or the perceived threat of stimuli.
give a statistic on the link between male aggression and testosterone
- males produce more testosterone and are also more aggressive
- shown in the prison population- over 75% of the prison population are male
when do crime rates rise
- crime rates rise in the early teeens due to the rise of testosterone as a result of puberty- causing more aggressive behaviour
- testosterone fluctuates throughout lifespan- both testosterone and aggressive acts increase around ages of 14-21 yrs old
what parts of the brain is testosterone linked to
- linked to cell growth of the amygdala and the hypothalamus
- prepares us for aggression as adults
strength of testosterone (D)
A strenght of this explanation is the supporting evidence from dabbs. Dabbs 1995 conducted a study on the levels of testosterone found in the saliva of 89 male prisoners, and found that the levels of testosterone was higher in those who had committed violent crime compared to non violent crime. 10/11 prisoners who had committed violent crime had high levels of testosterone. this supports the theories idea that high levels of testosterone can correlate to high levels aggression.
what is the role of cortisol
- responsible for waking us up
- regulates changes in the body as a response to stress
what is the link between cortisol, testosterone and aggression?
- cortisol inhibits testosterone.
- low cortisol + high testosteron = high aggression
- cortisol increases anxiety and social withdrawal in stressful situations- this limits the aggression which we display.
supporting evidence for cortisol
Barzman foudn that the amount of cortisol found in the saliva of 17 boys aged 7-9 taken 30 minutes after waking up in a psychiatric ward correlated with the number of aggressive incidents recorded by nurses. therefore this suggests that there is a link between cortisol levels and aggression.
compliment of the methodology
B (PEEIA)
Barzmans research has high levels of reliability. this is because it follows a standardised procedure of measuring cortisol levels in saliva 30 minutes after waking up and once again between 3:45 and 7:45pm. therefore the study can be easily replicated to test for consistency, increasing reliability. additionally, the study also has high levels of validity, as it empirically measured cortisol levels by physically testing them and producing quantitative data, which allows for increased accuracy within findings.
application to society
a strength of this theory is that there is positive applications to society. this is because it identifies that aggression can be caused by increased levels of testosterone and lower levels of cortisol. this means that hormone therapy can be developed to reduce levels of twstosterone, thus reducing aggression which reduces the risk of offending and therefore the risk to society.
evaluate the theory (PEE)
R
the theory lacks credibility as it is reductionist. this is because it oversimplifies human aggression to high levels of testosterone which causes increased reactivity to the amygdalas rage or the perceived threat of stimuli, which causes an individual to act aggressively. however, the complexity of human behaviour means that the biological explanation is insufficient on its own to explain many differetn aspects of human aggression. For example, research by Bandura found that social learning theory- observing a role model committing acts of violence- can be a powerful influence on the aggressive behaviour of children. therefore, hormones are an incomplete explanation of human behaviour, thus lacking credibility- and so theories should take a more holsitic approach.
