Aggression Flashcards
(56 cards)
1
Q
what is the limbic system?
A
- the system that coordinates behaviour that satisfy motivational and emotional urges
- such as aggression and fear
2
Q
what two key structures in the limbic system are thought to be associated with aggression?
A
- the amygdala
- the hippocampus
3
Q
what is the purpose of the amygdala?
A
-quickly evaluating the emotional importance of sensory information
4
Q
what is the purpose of the hippocampus?
A
-involved in the making of long term memories and therefore allows a comparison of present conditions with the past.
5
Q
how does the amygdala cause aggression?
A
- if the amygdala is stimulated then it can result in an aggressive response
- e.g. snarling.
6
Q
what study supports the idea of the amygdala causing aggression?
A
- Kluver and Bucy
- found that the destruction of the amygdala caused a dominant monkey to lose its dominant position in the social group.
7
Q
how does serotonin cause aggression?
A
- inhibits the firing of the amygdala and therefore the person will act more rationally
- low levels cause aggression as they act more impulsively
8
Q
what study supports the serotonin hypothesis?
A
- Mann et al
- gave 35 pps dexfenfluramine, inhibits serotonin
- using a questionnaire
- measured aggression levels
- found that aggression increased but only in males
9
Q
what is the hormonal influence of aggression?
A
-testosterone
10
Q
what are the evaluation for the neural influences of aggression? (the limbic system)
A
- Pardini et al provided evidence for the role of the amygdala(smaller amygdala = persistent aggression levels)
- Raine et al provided evidence for the role of the hippocampus in aggression (MRI scans showed a difference between more aggressive criminals and less aggressive)
11
Q
what are the evaluation points for the serotonin hypothesis?
A
- Duke et al carried out a meta-analysis of 175 studies. found a slight relationship between serotonin and aggression however found that the theory is more complex than we originally thought.
- Raleigh et al found monkeys with increased serotonin levels were less aggressive.
12
Q
how does the idea of twin studies support the idea of genetic factors in aggression?
A
- if monozygotic twins are similar in their aggressive behaviour then aggression is likely to be cause by genetics.
- however if the dizygotic show more similarities in their aggressive behaviour (in comparison to the monozygotic) then aggression may be due to the environment.
13
Q
how does the idea of adoption studies help support the idea of genetic factors in aggression?
A
- adoption studies allow us to separate hereditary aggression and environmental factors.
- a study of 14,000 adoptions in Denmark found that boys with criminal convictions also has fathers with criminal convictions.
14
Q
what research was carried out to investigate the genetic factors in aggression? (Miles and Carey)
A
- Miles and Carey
- meta analysis of 24 twin and adoption studies.
- results suggested that genetic could be responsible for 50% of aggressive behaviour.
- age is important
15
Q
what other research was carried out to investigate genetics?
A
- Rhee and Waldman
- combines the results of 51 twin and adoption studies
- found that anti social behaviour was a product of genetics
- however in both of the genetic studies they both show that genetics are important for the development of aggressive behaviours but other factors determine how it is expressed.
16
Q
what is MAOA?
A
-an enzyme that regulates the metabolism of serotonin
17
Q
what is MAOA-H and MAOA-L?
A
- MAOA-H is a high level of the MAOA, and if they are maltreated they do not show aggressive behaviour.
- MAOA-L is a low level of the MAOA. and if people with this low level of MAOA are maltreated then they exhibit aggressive behaviour.
18
Q
what are the evaluation points for the genetic explanation of aggression?
A
- Problems of sampling
- difficulties of determining the role of genetic factors
- problems of assessing aggression
- there is evidence to support the MAOA gene
- MAOA may explain the gender differences in aggression.
19
Q
what is the ethological explanation of aggression?
A
- fixed action patterns
- ritualistic aggression
- wolves and doves
20
Q
what is a fixed action pattern?
A
-an innate response to a sign stimulus
21
Q
what is an innate releasing mechanism?
A
- the actual response to stimuli
- e.g. Male sticklebacks will respond aggressively to the red underbelly of a rival male – but not to a female who does not have the red underbelly.
22
Q
who criticised the ‘instinctive view of aggression?
A
-Lehrmann
23
Q
what did Lehrmann suggest about the ethological explanation of aggression?
A
- he believed that Lorenz underestimated the importance of environmental factors
- patterned behaviours aren’t as ‘fixed’ as Lorenz thought
24
Q
what did Eibl-Eibesfeldt suggest about humans and their relation to Fixed action patterns?
A
- patterned behaviours aren’t as ‘fixed’ as Lorenz thought
- humans are more complex and less predictable.
25
what are the benefits of ritualised aggression?
-prevents conflict from developing into dangerous situations
26
what is the evolutionary explanation of aggression?
-The central idea of this topic is that for aggression to be an adaptive feature it has to serve a purpose.
27
what is sexual competition?
-male competition for women
28
how does sexual competition create aggressive behaviour?
-males that are more aggressive get the better choice of women and can fight off the competition better and therefore pass on their genes.
29
what study supports sexual competition? (Puts)
-he argues that this can be seen through:
- men having more muscle mass than women
- they also have thicker jawbones
- more robust skulls and thicker browbones
30
what is sexual jealousy?
-paternal uncertainty
31
how does sexual jealousy relate to aggression?
- the idea that the child may not be theirs can cause an aggressive response in a male
- cuckoldry
32
who supports the idea of sexual jealousy?
- Buss
| - he suggests that males will often exert their dominance through aggressive behaviour.
33
what are the evaluation points for evolutionary explanations of human aggression?
- aggression may not be adaptive
- there is support for the link between aggression and status
- there is an issue with gender bias
- there are also many issues with this explanation (primal approach)
34
what is the frustration aggression hypothesis?
- Dollard et al
- all aggression is a result of frustration
- someone is aggressive to experience catharsis
35
what is displaced aggression?
- sometimes it is wrong to aim frustration/aggression to the source.
- therefore they displace their aggression elsewhere.
- in order to experience catharsis, a scapegoat is used.
36
who crafted the revised frustration aggression hypothesis?
-Berkowitz
37
what did Berkowitz's revised hypothesis suggest?
- frustration is neither necessary or sufficient for aggression
- its negative feelings that cause the aggression
38
what are the evaluation points for the frustration aggression hypothesis?
- aggression is not an automatic consequence of frustration
- no research support for catharsis
- not all aggression comes from frustration
- frustration and mass killings
- sports violence
39
what is the social learning theory?
- Bandura
| - we learn by observing others.
40
what is the key study for SLT?
- Bandura et al
- pps were children
- observed an adult with a bobo doll
- sent into room after this exposure
- out of the children that were exposed to the violent behaviour they mimicked the behaviour.
41
what are the evaluation points for the SLT?
- lack of realism in research
- it can explain inconsistencies in aggressive behaviour
- cultural differences in aggression
- the consequences of social learning (real world application)
42
what is deindividuation?
-when someone is in a crowd they lose self control and act outside of the social norms.
43
what is the key study for deindividuation?
- Zimbardo (Milgram with hoods)
- 4 female under grads required to deliver electric shocks to each other
- identities stripped of 1 half of pps
- other half left to be themselves and had to wear nametags
- pps stripped gave more shocks and for twice as long
44
what are the evaluative points for deindividuation?
- gender
- anonymity and deindividuation
- cultural differences
- inconclusive support
45
describe the situational explanation: The deprivation model
-institutional aggression is a result of stressful and oppressive conditions.
46
what does Sykes suggest about the cause of institutional aggression?
- he described specific deprivations such as: loss of liberty, loss of autonomy and the loss of security.
- prisoners cope in different ways such as: becoming a recluse, or acting violently.
47
describe the role of prison characteristic in the cause of aggressive behaviour.
-Cooke et al argues that prisoners are only violent in certain circumstances
48
what are the 3 characteristics that are thought to cause aggression in prisons?
- overcrowding
- heat and noise
- job burnout
49
describe the dispositional explanation: The importation model.
- Irwin and Cressy
| - suggested that criminals bring outside violent behaviour into prisons.
50
Describe the role of dispositional characteristics.
the following have been found to relate to aggressive behaviour:
-anger, anti social behaviour personality style
Wang and Diamond found that these characteristics can predict aggressive behaviour than anything else
-low self control
DeLisi et al found that self control was a good predictor of aggressive behaviour.
51
State an evaluative point for the dispositional explanation. (Mears et al)
- tested the view that inmate behaviour stems in the part of cultural belief that street behaviour is brought into the prisons
- supported the idea
52
What were the challenges to the importation model?
- DeLisi et al challenges the claim that pre-prison gang memberships predicts violence in prison.
- found that there was no difference
- can be explained by the fact that they are separated from the general prison inmates
53
what did McCorkle find about the deprivation model?
- supporting evidence
- looked at 371 US prisons
- found that the dispositional factors effected the violence towards other prisoners and guards
54
who challenged the deprivation model?
-Harer and Steffensmeier
55
what did Harer and Steffenmeier do?
- collected data from 24,000 inmates from over 58 prisons across the US
- they had two variables
1) importation variable (criminal history)
2) dispositional variable(security)
- only importation was a good predictor
56
what is the real life application to the deprivation model?
-prisons changed so violence decreased
