Aggression: Neural & Hormonal Influences

Question 1

Limbic system

Answer 1

Coordinates behaviour related to motivation and emotion

contains amygdala and hippocampus

Question 2

Is the limbic system a neural or hormonal influence on aggression?

Answer 2

Neural

Question 3

Amygdala

Answer 3

Responsible for emotion and aggression and other adaptive qualities such as fear
Key in aggressive responses; fast responses to imm stressors

Question 4

Hippocampus

Answer 4

Responsible for memory and mediated aggression

Suitable responses based on previous experiences rather than innate stimuli

Question 5

Mediated aggression

Answer 5

Aggression that has been thought about

Question 6

Is serotonin neural or hormonal influence on aggression?

Answer 6

Neural

Question 7

Serotonin - overall

Answer 7

Low levels of serotonin lead to increased aggressive behaviour

Serotonin inhibits our responses to emotional stimuli
Inhibiting activation of amygdala, inhibits aggressive behaviour

Low levels of serotonin = response to aggression more often because amygdala is more easily actived when stimulated by external events

Question 8

Role of serotonin

Answer 8

Serotonin inhibits our responses to emotional stimuli

Inhibiting activation of amygdala, inhibits aggressive behaviour

Question 9

Low levels of serotonin

Answer 9

Low levels of serotonin lead to increased aggressive behaviour

Low levels of serotonin = response to aggression more often because amygdala is more easily actived when stimulated by external events

Question 10

Is testosterone a neural or hormonal influence on aggression?

Answer 10

Hormonal

Question 11

Testosterone

Answer 11

Male sex hormone
Increase dominant and agg behaviour
Thought to influence agg from young adulthood as it affects diff areas of brain involved in controlling aggression

Influences other hormone lvls thought to be involved in aggression, such as vasopressin

Question 12

Vasopressin

Answer 12

Thought to be involved in aggression

Testosterone influences level of vasopressin

Question 13

A03 limbic System

Answer 13

Kleiver and Bucy (1937)

Question 14

Kliever and Bucy

Answer 14

If amygdala removed, animals ability to act aggressively and in a dominant role is removed as well

Question 15

A03: Hippocampus

Answer 15

Raine (2004)

Question 16

A03: Raine

Answer 16

‘Unsuccessful psychopaths’ (violent criminals had been caught) had an asymmetry in the hippocampi that wasn’t present in the ‘successful psychopaths’ (weren’t caught)

Question 17

A03: raine SO what?

Answer 17

Suggested impaired ability of hippocampus and amygdala to work together, lead to inappropriate physical and verbal responses

Question 18

A03 Serotonin

Answer 18

Raleigh

Mann (1990)

Question 19

Raleigh - procedure

Answer 19

Vervet monkeys fed diets either:

a) high in tryptophan
b) low in tryptophan

Question 20

A03 Raleigh - findings

Answer 20

Group a) had decreased aggression (due to high serotonin)

Group b) had increased aggression (due to low serotonin)

Question 21

A03 Raleigh SO what?

Answer 21

Suggests negative cause and effect between serotonin and aggression

Question 22

A03 Raleigh criticism

Answer 22

Can’t apply to humans

Vervet monkeys have different evolutionary pressures and social environments

Question 23

Tryptophan

Answer 23

Increases serotonin levels

Question 24

A03: Mann procedure

Answer 24

Gave 35 healthy pp’s dexfenfluramine (reduces serotonin)

Pp’s filled out questionnaire about hostility

Question 25

A03 Mann findings

Answer 25

Males who had taken drug (but not females) exhibited greater levels of hostility and aggression after taking the drug

Question 26

A03 Testosterone

Answer 26

Dabbs

Lindman

Question 27

A03 Dabbs

Answer 27

Took saliva samples of criminals to test level of testosterone

Question 28

A03 Dabbs findings

Answer 28

High levels of testosterone in violent criminals

lower levels of testosterone in non-violent crime

Question 29

A03 Lindman

Answer 29

Found young males he behaved aggressively when drunk and high levels of testosterone than those who didn’t act aggressively

Question 30

A03. Criticism between link of neural and hormonal influences and aggression

Answer 30

Reductionist
Complexity of human behaviour
Biological explanations insufficient on own to explain many different aspects of human behaviour
E.g. Banduras research: social learning can be a powerful influence on aggressive behaviour of children