Biological Agression Evaluation

Question 1

Evaluate Brunner’s study

Answer 1

Cultural bias - Dutch may be more aggressive than others

Small sample size - only one family, this family may have been brought up differently eg to be more aggressive

Question 2

Evaluate genetic explanations for aggression

Answer 2

Determinist and therefore unethical as people who commit violent crimes say they weren’t responsible for their actions as they were determined by their genes
Moffat provided gene-environment interaction so not reductionist, and this gives us good implications for real life

Question 3

Evaluate Trut et al. 2009

Answer 3

Non-human animals so unethical and can’t be generalised to humans
Correlational not causation

Question 4

Evaluate Nelson 1995

Answer 4

Testosterone levels weren’t taken at the exact time of the act so we are not sure what has caused what exactly
Only studied prisoners who are a specific type of people and aren’t representative of the whole population

Question 5

Evaluate neural and hormonal explanations of aggression

Answer 5

Research is only correlational so doesn’t show causation

Reductionist as it ignores other factors eg environment

Question 6

Evaluate Court-Brown’s study

Answer 6

Unethical - people are ostracised for being aggressive when they actually aren’t
Gender biased - cannot be generalised to women so therefore cannot explain aggression in women