FRUSTRATION-AGGRESSION Flashcards
WHO FORMULATED THE FRUSTRATION-AGGRESSION HYPOTHESIS?
Dollard.
WHAT DOES FRUSTRATION ALWAYS LEAD TO?
According to them, frustration always leads to aggression, and aggression is always the result of frustration.
WHAT IS THIS HYPOTHESIS BASED ON?
The psychodynamic concept of catharsis, and views aggression as a psychological drive akin to biological drives such as hunger.
WHAT HAPPENS HAPPENS IF OUR ATTEMPT TO ACHIEVE A GOAL IS BLOCKED BY AN EXTERNAL FACTOR?
If our attempt to achieve a goal is blocked by some external factor, we experience frustration. This creates an aggressive drive, which leads to aggressive behaviour, such as a violent fantasy, a verbal outburst or even physical violence.
HOW IS THE HYPOTHESIS CATHARTIC?
This is cathartic because the aggression created by the frustration is satisfied, thereby reducing the drive and making further aggression less likely. We feel better for haven gotten it ‘off our chest’.
WHAT ARE THE 3 REASONS WHY AGGRESSION IS NOT ALWAYS EXPRESSED DIRECTLY AGAINST THE SOURCE? SO WHAT HAPPENS NEXT AS A RESULT?
- The cause of our frustration may be abstract, such as economic situation, the government or the music industry.
- The cause may be too powerful and we risk punishment by aggressing against it, ie the teacher who gave you a lower grade than expected.
- The cause may be unavailable at the time, ie the teacher left before you realised the bad grade you got.
Therefore our aggression is deflected (or displaced) onto an alternative - one that is not abstract, weaker and is available like an inanimate object, sibling or pet.
WHO INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF FRUSTRATION ON AGGRESSION?
Geen.
WHAT WAS THE PROCEDURE OF THE STUDY INTO FRUSTRATION AGGRESSION?
Male university students were given a task of completing a jigsaw puzzle. Their level of frustration was experimentally manipulated in 1 of 3 ways. For some ppts, the puzzle was impossible to solve . For others they had run out of time because another student in the room kept interfering (confederate). For the third group, the confederate took to insulting the ppt as they failed to solve the puzzle. The next part of the study involved the ppts giving electric shocks to the confederate when they made a mistake on another task.
WHAT WAS THE FINDINGS OF THE STUDY INTO FRUSTRATION AGGRESSION?
The insulted ppts gave the strongest shocks on average, followed by the interfered group, the the impossible task ppts. All groups selected more intense shocks that a non-frustrated control group.
WHAT IS THE ROLE OF ENVIRONMENTAL CUES?
According to Berkowitz, frustration merely creates a readiness for aggression. But the presence of aggressive cues in the environment make acting upon the much more likely. Therefore, cues are an additional element of the frustration-aggression hypothesis.
HOW DID BERKOWITZ AND LEPAGE DEMONSTRATE THE IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL CUES ON AGGRESSION IN THEIR FAMOUS STUDY?
They arranged for student ppts to be given electric shocks in a lab situation, creating anger and frustration. The individual who gave the shocks was a confederate of the researchers. The ppts then had the opportunity to turn the tables and give shocks to the confederate.
WHAT WERW THE FINDING OF BERKOWITZ’ AND LEPAGE’ STUDY?
The findings show that the number of shocks given depended on the presence of an absence of weapons in the lab. In one condition, 2 guns were present on the table next to the shock machine. The average number of shocks given in this condition was 6.07. When no guns were present, the average number of shocks was significantly fewer., at 4.67. This weapons-effect supports Berkowitz’ contention that the presence of aggressive environmental cues stimulates aggression - ‘The finger pulls the trigger, but the trigger may also be pulling the finger’.
EVAL: GIVE A STRENGTH OF THE AGGRESSION HYPOTHESIS MODEL?
F - Marcus-Newhall et al conducted a mata-analysis of 49 studies of displaced aggression, a key concept of the frustration-aggression hypothesis. These studies investigated situations in which aggressive behaviour had to be directed against a target other than the one that caused the frustration. FINDINGS - displaced aggression is a reliable phenomenon. Ppts who were provoked but unable to retaliate directly against source = significantly more likely to aggress against an innocent party than ppl who were not provoked. This is the exact outcome predicted by the hypothesis.
WHATS AN ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATION FOR THE FRUSTRATION-AGGRESSION HYPOTHESIS?
A - It became clear from research that frustration does not always lead to aggression, and that aggression can occur without frustration. The hypothesis was reformulated by Berkowitz who argued that frustration is just one of many aversive stimuli that create negative feelings; others include jealousy, pain and loneliness. Aggressive behaviour is triggered by negative feelings (such as anger) rather than frustration specifically. Also, the outcome of frustration can be a range of responses, only one which is aggression. Ie someone getting s lower grade than expected may not necessarily lead to aggression but despair , anxiety, helplessness or determination. This explanation arouse because the original frustration-aggression hypothesis was inadequate, as it only explained how aggression arises in some situations but not others.
WHAT IS THE REAL LIFE APPLICATION FOR THE FRUSTRATION-AGGRESSION HYPOTHESIS?
Berkowitz’ argument that the trigger can pull the finger has featured in the gun control debate in the United States. Some states allow ‘open carry’, where a gun does not have to be concealed. There is concern by many research debates that the open presence of a weapon can act as a cue to aggression, making its use more likely.
