Aggression: Key Terms

Question 1

The Limbic System

Answer 1

an area of the brain that helps to coordinate behaviours that satisfy motivational and emotional urges

Question 2

2 Key Structures in Limbic System Associated with Aggression

Answer 2

1) amydala
2) hippocampus

Question 3

Role of Amydala in Aggression

Answer 3

• responsible for quickly evaluating emotional importance of sensory info + prompting appropriate response
• if certain areas of amygdala are stimulated electrically, an animal responds with aggression

Question 4

Role of Hippocampus in Aggression

Answer 4

• involved in formation of long term memories
• allows an animal to compare conditions of current threat with similar past experiences
• impaired hippocampul function prevents nervous system from putting things into relevant + meaningful context so may cause amygdala to respond inappropriately, resulting in aggressive behaviour

Question 5

Role of Testosterone in Aggression

Answer 5

• increased testosterone levels is related to increased amygdala reactivity which leads to aggressive behaviour

Question 6

Role of MAOA in Aggression

Answer 6

regulates metabolism of serotonin in the brain

Question 7

Difference between MAOA-H and MAOA-L

Answer 7

• MAOA-H is associated with high levels of MAOA and MAOA-L is associated with low levels
• those with MAOA-L variant more likely to grow up to exhibit anti-social behaviour but only if they had been maltreated as a child
• MAOA-L is more frequent in populations with a history of warfare

Question 8

Fixed Action Pattern (FAP)

Answer 8

a repetoire of stereotyped behaviours which occur in specific conditions (ie in response to specific triggers) and which don’t require learning

Question 9

5 Characteristics of Fixed Action Patterns

Answer 9

1) stereotyped - the behaviour always occurs in the same way
2) universal - the behaviour is the same in all conspecifics
3) independent of individual experience - the behaviour is innate, with no learning involved
4) ballistic - once triggered, the FAP can’t be changed or stopped
5) specific triggers - each FAP has a specific trigger (sign stimulus)

Question 10

Innate Releasing Mechanism (IRM)

Answer 10

a neural network that, when stimulated by the presence of a sign stimulus, communicates with motor control circuits to activate the fixed action pattern associated with that sign stimulus

Question 11

Ritualistic Aggression

Answer 11

aggressive behaviour that involves threat displays instead of fighting

Question 12

Hydraulic Model

Answer 12

• each fixed action pattern (FAP) has a reservoir of ‘action-specific energy’ (ASE) that builds up over time
• the appropriate sign stimulus causes the innate releasing mechanism (IRM) to release this energy and the animal then performs the FAP
• after performing the FAP, the reservoir of ASE is empty and the behaviour can’t be repeated until the ASE has built up again