(Abby) bio pack 3- aggression Flashcards
(73 cards)
1
Q
what is aronsons definition of aggression
A
- an intentional action aimed at doing harm or causing pain
- either physical or verbal
2
Q
what is the limbic system responsible for
A
- emotions
- forming memories
- motivation
2
Q
what is the amygdala
A
- within the limbic system, enables instinctive emotions such as happiness and anger
- connects to prefrontal cortex meaning when were exposed to threatening stimuli amygdala is activated, increasing emotional arousal and fight/flight response occurs
- therefore has a role in reactive aggression
3
Q
whats the role of the hypothalamus
A
to maintain homeostasis
4
Q
what evidence is there from case studies of brain damaged patients to support the role of the limbic system in aggression
A
- Charles Whitman was a student at texas uni and an ex marine
- he killed his wife and daughter and then killed 14 others and wounded another 32 during a shooting on campus
- after his death he was found to have a cancerous tumour in the hypothalamus & near the amygdala
5
Q
what evidence is there from brain scanning (FMRI) to support the role of the limbic system in aggression
A
- coccaro et al (2006) studied a group of people with intermittent explosive disorder (IED) to show that an overreactive amygdala is associated with high levels of reactive aggression
- they showed p’s a threatening stimuli and measured brain activity using FMRI scans
- compared to control group, p’s with IED had greater activity in amygdala and less in prefrontal cortex
6
Q
what are some of the executive functions of the prefrontal cortex
A
- planning, problem solving, social judgement, decision making and regulation of emotional response
7
Q
how does the prefrontal cortex regulate aggression
A
- controls reactive aggression impulses that stem from the amygdala
- it inhibits us from automatically reacting to threats and allows us to think about an appropriate course of action
- when we do stop and think we can still act aggressively, mainly when we have a goal in mind- called pro-active aggression
8
Q
what evidence is there from case studies of brain damaged patients to support the role of the prefrontal cortex in aggression
A
- phineas gage suffered accidental damage to his prefrontal lobes when a bolt when through his cheek and up through his eye
- he recovered physically but psychologically he became a different person
- he went from a sober, quiet man to an aggression drunk and showed poor social judgement
8
Q
what is the role of the neurotransmitter serotonin and how is it linked to aggression
A
- serotonin pathways are involved in the regulation of psychological biological functions like mood, anger, aggression and arousal
- low levels of serotonin are linked with increased tendency towards impulsive and aggressive behaviour
8
Q
what evidence is there from brain scanning (CAT) to support the role of the prefrontal cortex in aggression
A
- grafman et al (1966) studied veterans of the vietnam war using CT scans
- found that veterans with structural damage to there prefrontal cortex were more aggressive to those without
9
Q
what evidence is there for the role of serotonin in aggression
A
- clinical drug studies
- antidepressants which increases levels of serotonin (SSRIs) also tend to reduce irritability and impulse aggression
- suggests that increases serotonin levels lead to reduced aggression levels
10
Q
what happens when there is low levels of serotonin
A
high aggression and its usually reactive as no longer inhibiting the fight or flight response of the amydala
11
Q
who was raine
A
an expert witness
12
Q
what was the aim of raine et als study
A
using PET scans to detect if there are brain abnormalities in murderers who pleated NGRI
13
Q
who was in the experimental group of rain et als study
A
- ‘seriously dangerous individuals’
- 41 individuals charged with murder or manslaughter
all pleaded NGRI - mean age was 34.4
13
Q
what was the sample of rain et als study
A
- 2 groups
- 41 people (39m, 2f) in each group
13
Q
what did raine et al hypothesise
A
that p’s pleading NGRI would show brain dysfunction in areas of the brain previously associated iwth violence like the amygdala
13
Q
who was in the control group of rain et als study
A
- matched experimental group on age, sex and psychiatric illnesses such as schizophrenia
- experimental design is matched pairs
- they were further screened for there mental and psychiatric health
14
Q
what was the research method of rain et als study
A
- lab experiment using matched pairs design
- main IV as whether the p had committed murder or not
- DV were the results of the PET scans
- design is refered to quasi as researchers dont have complete control over the IV
15
Q
what was the procedure of raine et als study
A
p’s were required to perform a CPT (continuous performance task) involving p’s staring at a screen while various blurred symbols appear
- p’s had to press a button when a particular symbol appeared thus requiring constant attention
- they did it for 10 mins as a practise trial
- a radioactive glucose tracer was then injected into the p
- after another 32 mins of the task the p’s brains were PET scanned to detrrmine the glucose metbolic rate
16
Q
what were the results of rain et als study
A
- support was found for the hypothesis
- the NGRI group had brain abnormalities in areas that had previously been implicated in violent behaviour
- there were abnormal asymmetrical levels of limbic sytem activity compared to the control in the amygdala (right hemisphere higher than control, left lower
16
Q
what is one reason for raine et als conclusions
A
- the abnormal fucntioning of the amygdala which is responsible for emotional processing results in the murderers being fearless which increases the chances of violent behaviour
17
Q
what conclusions were drawn from rain et als study
A
- reduced activity in certain aras of the brain like the prefrontal cortex togther with asymmetries of activities in structures of the limbic system such as amygdala could predispose a person towards violent behaviour
17
what areas of grave are strong for raine et als study
- generalisability
- reliability
- applications
- validity
- ethics
18
what areas of grave are weak for raine et als study
- generalisability
- validity
- ethics
19
how is generlisability a strength for raine et als study
- large sample of violent offenders used
- sample more liekly to be representative of target population
- seen with 41 violent offenders used
- therefore results on brain disfucntion probably give some valid information on this type of violent offender and causes of there behaviour
20
how is generalisability a weakness for raine et als study
- sample consited of mainly men
- less likely to be representative of target population of female violent offenders
- seen in study with 41 murderers only 2 of which are female
- however most extremaly violent offenders are male so it may give valid info on brain disfucntion in the relatively small group of people
21
how is reliability a strength for raine et als study
- reliability is high as a whole
- because standardised procedures and equipment were used on every p increasing replicability
- e.g they had 10 mins practise before they were all given the same CPT for32 mins and then were all PET scanned
22
how is validity a strength for raine et als study
- some varibales were well controlled
- strength as it increases accuracy by reducing confounding varaibles that could affect outcome
- e.g p's didint take any medication for 2 weeks leading up to experiment to enure that mediaction didnt impact the results
22
how are applications a strength for raine et als study
- study is useful for society as it sugests that pre-dispositions for commiting violent criminal acts coul be identified using PET scans
- useful as violent offenders could be predicted and early interventions could take place
- e.g PET scans showed violent offenders had abnormal brain activity in structures like the PFC and amygdala compared to control
22
how is validity a weakness for raine et als study
- study is reductionist as it focuses on brain structure and activity as an explanation of violent criminal behaviour reducing validity
- because it is limited in its explanation of the causes of violent aggression
- e.g it dors not give a reason for the activity detected in the PET scans
- however reductionism is a valuable characteristic of the scientific approach as it allows for raine to fvous on the biological varaible
23
how are ethics a strength for raine et als study
- study was approved by the ethics committees
- means ethical guidelines were largely followed
- e.g there was no deception and limited harm to the p's and all gave consent
- however although consent was given it is possible that p's may not have been fully aware of the implications of the consent
24
how are ethics a weakness for raine et als study
the p's were not always fully protected from harm
- means that although ethical guidelines were followed there were still costs for the p's
- e.g all p's couldnt take meds for 2 weeks prior to experiment
- however these problems may be outweighed by the p's hope to have the NGRI claim accepted
24
what was macoby and jacklins (1974) study
- undertook dozens of lab ad field experiemtns in various cultures
- they concluded that boys re consistently more aggressive than girls
- one reason is males produce more testosterone than females and are exposed to more in the womb
25
what are the issues and debated for raines study
determinism
- those with a smaller amygdala and low activity in PFC tend to be more aggressive because hormones are less regulated
26
how is testosterone linked with aggression
- high levels of test are linked with high levels of aggression
- test may infuence serotonin levels in areas of the brain involved with aggressive reactions such as amygdala and PFC
27
what are the 4 peices of supporting research for the role of testosterone in aggression
- dabbs et al (1987)-> saliva of prisoners
- dabbs et al (1995)
- olweus et al (1980)-> boys impatience
- wagner et al (1879)-> aggression in mice
27
what is cortisol and how is it linked with aggression
- its a hormone produced inthe adrenal glands and is responsible for managing stress levels
- normal cortisol level seems to inhibit aggressive behaviour while low cortisol is linked with aggressive behaviour
- cortisol does not have a direct affect on aggression as high cortisol inhinbits test so lnhiits aggression
28
name the study used to support cortsiol and aggression
- Barzman et al (2013) -> hormones in saliva of 7-9 yr old boys in psychiatric hospitals
29
what are the strengths when evaluating hormones as an explanation of aggression
-scientific credability
- supporting evidence
- applications
30
what are the weaknesses when evaluating hormones as an explanation of aggression
scientific credability
- reductionism
31
how can evolution be used to explain gender differences in behaviour
- wilson and daley proposed status competition as a way of explaining the evolutionary advantage of male aggression
- this means males will partake in risky activities even if they involve the risk of serious injury or death, due to females being attracted to aggressive risk takers
- by taking part in these activites they are competing at a higher status than other males, iincreasing there chance of winning a high value rate and reproducing
32
what evidence is there to support status compeition
- wilson and daly analysed data from police homicide records and found that most were commited by young unmarried males
- most homicides involved conflict caused by retaliation, showing of and jealousy
33
what are the strengths of using evolution to explain aggression
- scientific credability is high of the original theory
- supporting evidence is extensive and wide- ranging
34
what are the weaknesses of using evolution to explain aggression
- scientiic credibility when the theory of evolution is applied to behaviour is lowered
- reductionism
- determinism
35
what occurs in twin studies
- monozygotic (identical) twins and dizygotic (non-identical) twins are compared
- if there is a genetic (nature) contribution to a specific behvaiour, MZ would be expected to be more similar (have higher concordance rates) than DZ twins on this 'trait'
36
what occurs in adoption studies
- concordance rates between the adoptee and the adopted parents for a particular trait are compared to the concordance rates between the adoptee and the biological parents
- rationale same as in twin studies in the adoptee- biological parents indicating that the trait is affected by genetics (nature)
37
what was the aim of gottesman and shields (1966) experiment
- to see whether schizophrenia had a genetic basis
- they examined records of patients in a psychiatric hospital over a 16 year period
38
what was the sample of gottesman and shields experiment
- identified 57 schitzophrenic patients that were one member of a twin
- they tracked down the other twin for each participant
- 24 of the twin pairs were monozygotic and 33 were dizygotic
39
what data collection methods were used in gottesman and shields experiment
- hospital notes
- self report questionnaires
- self report interviews
- personality testing
- tests to measure disorder thinking
40
who was the proband in gottesman and shields experiment
the patient who was initially admitted to the hospital
41
what were the 4 categories each proband and their twin were put into in gottesman and shields experiment
- 1) both the proband and co twin had been hospitalised and categorised with schizophrenia
- 2) both had hospitalisation but the co twin had been given another diagnosis related to schizophrenia
- 3) the co twin had some psychiatric abnormality but nothing related to schizophrenia
- 4) proband had schizophrenia but co twin was clinically normal
41
what were the results of gottesman and shields experiment
- concordance rates were higher for both MZ and DZ twins for severe schizophrenia compared to mild schizophrenia
- concordance rates were higher in females compared to males (both MZ and DZ)
- concordance for severe schizophrenia was higher in MZ (77%) than DZ (22%)
42
what are the conclusions drawn from gottesman and shields experiment
- schizophrenia does have a biological basis as the chance of developing schizophrenia appears to be influenced by a persons genes
- not totally caused by genes as concordance wasnt 100% in MZ, therefore genes are a risk factor but environmental triggers are necessary
43
why are adoption studies better than twin studies
- in twin studies each twin pair grows up in the same environment when growing up
- adoption studies compare MZ and DZ twin pairs that were separated at birth and raised at different environment
- adoption studies can also look at non-twin children that are adopted
44
what was the aim of Ludeke et als adoption study
- to determine whether peoples attitudes could be influenced through there genes
45
what is the procedure of Ludeke et als adoption study
- 66 MZ twins and 53 DZ twins that were separated at birth and reunited later in life
- all members of Minnesota's study of twins reared apart group
- filled in various self report methods to determine attitudes towards traditionalism
46
what were the results found in Ludeke et als adoption study
- strong positive correlations found across all scales of MZ twins
- only conservatism measured highly for DZ twins
47
what are the conclusions of Ludeke et als adoption study
- genes do have an influence on peoples attitudes towards traditionalism
- confident this is not due to twins having same environment growing up as they were separate
48
what is one strength of twin studies
- high scientific credibility
- unique research design allows them to empirically study the nature nurture on human behaviour
- strength as its provides lots of objective, quantitative data in support of the role of genetics and/or the environment in certain behaviours
-e.g gottesman and shields found that concordance rates for severe schizophrenia is higher in MZ twins (75%) than DZ twins (22%)
49
what is one weakness of twin studies
- scientific credibility is lowered by confounding variables
- in twin studies each twin pair shares the same environment when growing up
- weakens validity as data ono genetics may be confounded as researchers cant be sue that the environment isnt also influencing the behaviour
- eg gottesman and shields cant rule out that the similarities are not due to environmental factors
50
what is one weakness of adoption studies
- scientific credibility is lowered by confounding variables
- studies do not account for adoptive families choosing children due to their similarities to the biological families
- child may also have spent time with their adoptive families before adoption
- weakness as it means researchers cant be sure that any results showing genetic influences on behaviour are completly accurate because upbringing may be a confounding variable
- reducing validity
51
what is the alternate explanation to the biological approach
- freud's psychodynamic explanation of aggression
51
what is one strength of adoption studies
- scientific credibility is high in adoption studies
- allow for clear isolation of environmental influences
- particularly true in cases where adoption studies use MZ and DZ twins that have been separated at birth and then adopted
- e.g ludeke et al findings allowed them to suggest that genes have an influence on peoples attitudes towards traditionalism
52
what is the key assumption of freud's psychodynamic explanation of aggression
- our awareness is in layers, so much of what we think and feel, and most of what motivates us is in the unconscious mind
53
what are the 3 structures of the mind according to freud's psychodynamic explanation of aggression
- conscious
- pre- conscious
- unconscious
54
describe the ID, EGO and super EGO
- ID- born with a mass of pleasure seeking desires and operates on the pleasure principle for immediate gratification
- EGO- operates on the reality principle, controls desires for ID, maintains balance between ID and super EGO
- super EGO- we take on ethics of other people, operates on morality principle, provides us with a conscience
55
what are the 5 defence mechanisms
- displacement
- denial
- repression
- projection
- regression
56
what is the eros
- motivates us to live, love and create new experiences and ideas
57
what is the thanatos
- the death instinct and is a destructive drive to bring us back to the inorganic state
58
how do you control aggression according to freud's psychodynamic explanation of aggression
- catharsis
- the process of releasing negative energy from the mind
59
what are the 5 stages of psycho sexual development according to freud
- oral stage
- anal stage
- phallic stage
- latency stage
- genital stage
