The Ehthological Explanation For Aggression

Question 1

What is ethology?

Answer 1

It is the study of animals.

Question 2

What are the three ways we use animals to understand human aggression?

Answer 2

1. Helps define aggression and how it occurs during reproduction and threat.
2. Looks at animals in a natural setting to see how aggression helped the evolutionary process. - humans habitat hard to see in the modern age.
3. Easier to control a lab experiment with animals than humans.

Question 3

What is the innate releasing mechanism?

Answer 3

specific neural circuits hardwired into the brain which monitor the drive. Ie aggression.

No control over this.

Question 4

What researcher cane up with the innate releasing mechanisms and what does he believe?

Answer 4

Konrad Lorenz

• believed animals have the mechanism to release aggressive behaviour in order to stay satisfied.
• believed it built up and reset each time an aggressive act occurred.

Question 5

What is the fixed action plan? (FAP)

Answer 5

• sequence of behaviour that almost all members of the species act.

Question 6

What research backs up the fixed action plan?

Answer 6

• Tinbergen (1952)
• found male stickle backs to attack model stickler backs with red Bellies when they were put near the nest.
• 100% of the sticklebacks used reacted this way
• proving FAP to work innately.

Question 7

Give me three evaluative points about ethology?

Answer 7

❌ can’t generalise from animals to humans - animals may experience innate releasing mechanism and the fixed action plan, reacting in the same way. But humans react differently most of the time.

❌ ethological theory says animals react the same in their species whereas humans don’t.

❌ not hacked by evolutionary theory - animals attract mats with aggression. Humans lose partners with aggression =different ways to survive.