Ethological Explanation For Agression

Question 1

What is ethology?

Answer 1

The study of animal behaviour

Question 2

How does ethology help us understand human aggression?

Answer 2

• It helps define aggression and looks at how it occurs with other behaviours such as reproduction and threat.
• It helps us look at animals in their natural setting, means we can understand the way it has helped the evolutionary process. This is more difficult with humans in the modern day habitat.
• Animal studies investigating aggression can be done in highly controlled conditions. This is not possible to the same extent with human participants.

Question 3

Who is the founder of ethology?

Answer 3

-Lorenz

Question 4

What is an innate releasing mechanism?

Answer 4

-A biological structure or process such as the brain which is activated by an external stimulus that in turn triggers a fixed action pattern.

Question 5

What is a fixed action pattern?

Answer 5

It is a sequence of stereotyped preprogrammed behaviours triggered by an innate releasing mechanism.

Question 6

Outline the ethnological explanation of aggression?

Answer 6

• The ethnological explanation suggests aggression is viewed as an instinct and occurs in all species in society without the need for learning It provides an adaptive function therefore it is believed an innate behaviour.
• Lorenz suggested that aggression builds up and aggression acts as a release. It is similar to food, sleep and drink in that it was a innate drive that needed to be satisfied.
• Aggression as a behaviour can help survival, as aggression protects resources such as land and food. Aggression can establish dominance hierarchies, and these are vital to allow access to resources, such as females.
• IRM and FAP is universal and is seen across every human and species.

Question 7

What type of aggression did Lorenz suggest animals produced which was more adaptive than direct aggression?

Answer 7

• Ritualistic aggression
• It is a form of symbolic aggression which helps ensure the organism is not harmed to the point where they cannot recover physically.
• symbolic forms of aggression pointed out that intra-species aggressive confrontations ended with ritual appeasement displays.
• The dominance gained from winning an aggressive confrontation is adaptive at it allows access to to resources

Question 8

AO3 for ethological explanation for aggression

Answer 8

• Animal studies
• Stickleback fish/Tinbergen
• Universal/cross cultural differences (South American’s/native white Americans)Nisbett