Social Psychological explanations of Aggression Flashcards
What is the main suggestion of social psychological explanations of aggression?
Aggression comes from real/imagined social pressure.
What are the 3 social psychological explanations of aggression?
- The frustration aggression hypothesis.
- The social learning theory.
- Deindividuation.
Explain the frustration aggression hypothesis.
Aggression is always caused by frustration and frustration will always cause aggression.
What did Dollard believe?
Aggressive drives are in many ways like other basic drives (e.g. hunger and thirst), so we engage in aggressive behaviour in order to reduce our aggressive drive.
What does the frustration-aggression hypothesis suggest about how aggression is expressed?
Aggression is not expressed directly, we displace our anger onto an alternative so that it doesn’t result in a consequence.
(Defence mechanisms)
Give 3 reasons why aggression is not expressed directly.
- The cause of frustration may be abstract.
- The cause of frustration may be too powerful.
- The cause of frustration may be unavailable at the time
Evaluate the frustration-aggression hypothesis.
+Supporting evidence for displacement of anger when reason is not available from Marcus-Newhall. (increases validity)
-Frustration does not always cause aggression. Suggests it may be overly simplistic.
Also, it does not differentiate between justified and unjustified aggression.
What did Bandura suggest about the social learning theory?
Aggression could be learned directly through operant conditioning.
Explain vicarious reinforcement in relation to aggression.
Vicarious reinforcement makes it more likely that the child will imitate behaviour because the aggressive behaviour is being rewarded and vice versa (vicarious punishment).
List the 4 mediational processes identified by Bandura.
- Attention
- Retention
- Reproduction
- Motivation
Outline Bandura’s study.
-Children witnesses role models aggressively attacking a Bobo doll or ignoring it.
-Children were then placed in a room with an identical Bobo doll.
-Bandura found that children who had observed the aggressive model were more aggressive.
-Boys showed more aggression than girls (especially if the model was male).
Evaluate the social learning theory of aggression.
+Supporting evidence from Poulin and Boivin.
Aggressive individuals attract other aggressive individuals and they aggressively influence each other.
+This explanation has practical applications.
Need non aggressive role models in schools, prisons etc. Also need to punish aggressive children and reward non aggressive children.
The media should also show less aggressive behaviour.
-This explanation is not comprehensive because it does not take into account biological factors or the role of cognition.
Explain deindividuation as an explanation for aggression.
When you’re part of a big group the concern of consequence won’t be as bad because you aren’t acting alone. There is a sense of increased anonymity so people feel they can act more aggressively and get away with it.
What is an example of a study for deindividuation?
Zimbardo- because they were part of a group they felt less identifiable and therefore deindividuated.
Evaluate deindividuation as an explanation for aggression.
+Supporting evidence from Dodd.
Showed that if there was no punishment you are more likely to do something aggressive.
-Contradictory evidence from Gergen’s Black Room experiment.
The participants in the black room were completely deindividuated but no aggression was shown, they instead became intimate with one another.
