Neural and hormonal Flashcards
what did Mann et all do and find?
he did an experiment on 35 healthy subjects and used dexaflenafluramine which depletes serotonin he found that males (not females) score more high on aggression scores
what does low serotonin do?
it increases aggression it is found in the low prefrontal cortex is where low serotonin is found
what does high levels of serotonin do?
it inhibits responses to the emotional stimuli that would lead to an aggressive response
what does high levels of dopamine do?
increases aggression
what did lavine et al find?
dopamine activity via the use of amphetamines has been associated with an increase in aggression
what is testosterone?
it is a male sex hormone that has been thought to influence aggression from young adulthood onwards as it works on brain areas involves with aggression
what did dabbs et al do and find?
measured salivary testosterone in violent and non-violent criminals those who had committed violent crimes had high levels of testosterone where as those who had committed non-violent crimes had low levels of testosterone
what Is the challenge hypothesis?
it proposes that in monogamous species testosterone levels rise in response to social challenges. due to human being monogamous male testosterone levels would rise in response to such challenges, provided that the threat is related to reproduction competition e.g. dispute over a female
what does high levels of cortisol do?
it inhibits testosterone levels and so decreases aggression
what does low levels of cortisol do?
it increase the likelihood of aggressive behaviour
what did Raleigh et al do and find?
he conducted a study using Vervet monkey. he found that the monkeys who were fed on experimental diet with high tryptophan (which increases serotonin) showed decreased levels I aggression where as those who were fed on experimental diets low in tryptophan had increased aggressive behaviour
What is the link beween serotonin and aggressive behaviour?
drugs that clinically raise serotonin levels should produce decreased levels of aggressive behaviour
what did bond establish?
antidepressant drugs do increase serotonin levels and that such drugs do tend to reduce irritability and aggression
what’s a weakened of dopamine?
research is fairly inconclusive about the causal role of dopamine in aggression
what has research suggested about dopamine?
that it’s influence might be as a consequence instead
what did couppis and Kennedy find?
in mice dopamine is involved as a positive reinforcer in a reward pathway
what does couppis and kennedy’s study suggest?
individuals will seek out aggressive encounters because they experience a rewarding sensation from it
what did Albert et al claim?
despite many studies showing a positive correlation between testosterone an aggression many studies find no relationship particularly in studies who have compared testosterone levels of aggressive and less aggressive individuals
what did mazur suggest?
suggested we Should distinguish aggression from dominance. mazur claims that aggression is just one form of dominance behaviour
what study supports cortisol?
the four-year study of boys with behavioural problems
why is neural and hormonal studies gender bias?
they mainly concentrate on males. a study showed that females who had a higher occupational status had higher testosterone levels
why is neural and hormonal reductionist?
the link is not established as well in humans and biological explanation is insufficient on its own to all the many different aspects of aggressive and violent behaviour
