Aggression and applications of social psych Flashcards
(21 cards)
What is aggression?
Behaviour intended to harm another individual. Can be actions and words.
What is instrumental (proactive) aggression?
Inflicting harm to obtain something or value (often calculated)
What is emotional (reactive) aggression?
Inflicting harm for its own sake. Often impulsive.
Give some examples of cultural differences in aggression?
- Gun related violence is high in the USA
- Group aggression is high in Western Europe
- Higher rates of dating violence amongst Israeli Arabs than Israeli Jews
- Groping on public transportation in Japan (64% of women in twenties and thirties)
In what sense are men more violent than women?
physically aggressive, direct-verbal aggression
In what sense are women more aggressive than men?
Indirect aggression - telling lies to get someone in trouble - isolating someone
How is aggression learnt?
Rewards, punishments, SLT
How is aggression positively reinforced?
Aggression produces desirable outcomes (a child who gets a toy by hitting the toy-owner will hit again)
How is aggression negatively reinforced?
Aggression stops undesirable outcomes (a child who can stop other children from teasing by shoving them away will do that again)
What are the three criteria for successful punishment of aggression?
(1) it immediately follows the aggression
(2) it is strong enough to deter the aggressor
(3) it is consistently applied and seen as fair by the aggressor
How can punishing aggression backfire?
Punishment offers a model to imitate
Explain Bandura’s SLT theory for the origin of aggression
Aggression is learnt through direct experience of rewards and punishments and through observation. People learn from models by direct experience or through media. Positive attitudes are developed towards aggression. Models construct aggressive scripts that serve as guides for how to behave.
Give a study of SLT and aggression (sport)
Gee and Leith (2007) analysed the penalty records from 200 games in the American National Ice Hockey League
American ice hockey players were more likely to be exposed to aggressive ice hockey models in the past than Europeans . US more penalties per player.
Give a study of SLT and aggression (offenders)
Wilkinson and Carr (2008) interviewed 416 young violent offenders from New York - 77% has seen someone get killed.
Explain the link between temperature and aggression
Zillman : Arousal triggered by one stimulus can be transferred or added to the arousal of a second stimulus. The combined arousal is then perceived as having been caused by only one stimulus. This is EXCITATION TRANSFER THEORY
Give an example of excitation transfer theory
Police officers saw a videotaped scenario on a large screen
A man threatened the participant with a crowbar but did not attack
It was either 21 degrees (Condition 1) or 27 degrees (Condition 2) in the room. Officers more likely to shoot in hotter room.
Explain the influence of the colour black on aggression
viewed as more aggressive wearing black. For example, referees awards more penalties against players wearing black. Attackers wearing black were judged as more aggressive than those wearing white.
Give an example of the colour black linking to dishonesty
A woman wearing black reporting an assault on a bus were viewed as more dishonest compared to when she was wearing white. The participants made more incorrect claims in the black clothing condition. This depends on context.
Does watching violence on TV make people aggressive?
Participants who had high tv viewing at age 8 had higher seriousness of criminal acts by age 30. However aggressive people may like watching aggressive movies or maybe low intelligent people like watching aggressive films.
How does media cause aggression?
Media violence can trigger hostile thoughts which makes people interpret other people’s behaviour as hostile
Media violence desensitizes people to violence and makes it acceptable
Media violence can create a social reality that people perceive as true
What were Dodd’s findings ?
What would you do if there were no repercussions?
36% chose criminal behaviour such as robbing a bank other popular responses were sexual acts or spying behaviours - perhaps because they don’t think they will be noticed
9% chose prosocial behaviour
