Genetic Explanation Of Aggression Flashcards
How do genes influence testosterone?
They influence how much testosterone is produced and the number and sensitivity of the receptors
Which gene is thought to influence activity of neurotransmitters associated with aggression?
MAOA
What does MAOA regulate?
Enzyme in the brain responsible for breaking down neurotransmitters
What is the breakdown of neurotransmitters thought to be responsible for?
Maintaining a stable mood
What extra chromosome do some aggressive males have?
Extra Y sex chromosome
What happens if MAOA is not functioning properly?
Neurotransmitters not properly broken down so respond in an excessive and aggressive way to stress
Who did research into the genetic explanation of aggression?
Cases et al, Jacobs et al, gottesman and shields, Brunner et al
What did cases et al do?
Genetically modified nice to lack MAOA
What did cases et al find?
Altered serotonin level and behaviour as the mice showed increase in aggression including during mating
What did Jacobs et al find?
XYY chromosome present in 3% population of inmates compared to 0.1% in general population
What did Gottesman and Shields do?
Found concordance rate of aggression of 87% in identical twins and 72% in non identical
What did Brunner et al find out about the Dutch family with the mutated MAOA?
All had borderline retardation and shower increased aggression when angry and fearful
Evaluation points of genetic explanation…
Too simplistic, deterministic, animal research & methodological issues of twin studies
What does the genetic explanation suggest?
Genes influence aggression e.g mutated MAOA and XYY chromosome
What’s an OTOH for deterministic?
If you know that genetics influences aggression you can aim to predict and intervene
