Hormones + Aggression

Question 1

How are hormones carried around the body

Answer 1

By the blood

Question 2

How long is the effect time of hormones

Answer 2

Minutes or hours

Question 3

Where are most hormones produced

Answer 3

Endocrine system
Group of glands

Question 4

What endocrine gland produces testosterone

Answer 4

Testes

Question 5

How is testosterone produced and what does this mean

Answer 5

Produced in spurts
Levels can rise suddenly and have an effect in minutes

Question 6

What feelings is testosterone linked to

Answer 6

Aggression

Question 7

Testosterone function

Answer 7

Promotes development of secondary sexual characters

Question 8

What does testosterone have a role in regulating

Answer 8

Social behaviour

Question 9

Do males or females produce more testosterone and where do females produce testosterone

Answer 9

Males
Females produce testosterone in the ovaries

Question 10

Wagner eat al 1979

Answer 10

Castrated mice and observed that aggression levels dropped
When castrated mice are injected with testosterone their aggression levels rose back to pre-castration levels

Question 11

Conclusion of Wagner et al 1979

Answer 11

Testosterone is a cause of aggression in mice and this may cause aggression in humans too

Question 12

How did Wagner et al 1979 measure aggression levels

Answer 12

Biting attacks on other mice

Question 13

What year was Wagner et al

Answer 13

1979

Question 14

Dabbs et al 1997

Answer 14

Measured testosterone in saliva of 87 females inmates of max security prison
Degree of criminal violence used by women is positively correlated with testosterone levels
Female results match the male link of aggression and testosterone - increased validity

Question 15

Where is cortisol produced

Answer 15

Adrenal gland

Question 16

Cortisol

Answer 16

Manages stress

Question 17

What does cortisol do regarding aggression

Answer 17

Inhibits (prevents) aggression by managing our stress levels

Question 18

What does it mean if you have low levels of cortisol and high levels of testosterone and why

Answer 18

Aggressive behaviour
Low cortisol means stress is not managed and so it cannot prevent aggression

Question 19

Virkkunen 1985

Answer 19

Low sleeks of cortisol in violent offenders

Question 20

Seratonin

Answer 20

Neurotransmitter linked to mood and sadness

Question 21

What can low levels of seratonin mean and why

Answer 21

Increased aggression
Seratonin inhibits aggression

Question 22

Higely et al 1996

Answer 22

Studied monkeys
Agggressive monkeys had low levels of Seratonin and less aggressive monkeys have higher Seratonin levels
Low Seratonin was associated with high risk taking behaviour like aggression onwards older larger animals and long leaps from trees which many died from

Question 23

Dopamine

Answer 23

Attention and pleasure neurotransmitter

Question 24

What do increased levels of dopamine mean

Answer 24

Increased aggression

Question 25

Ferrari et al 2003

Answer 25

Allowed a rat or fight every day for 10 days at approx. same time by introducing an intruder rat into test rats cage On 11th day, no intruder rat was introduced Measured Seratonin and dopamine levels in rat Dopamine levels had increased and Seratonin decreased because it was anticipating a fight

Question 26

What is the issue with animal studies and linking the findings with human behaviour

Answer 26

Anthropomorphic Cannot generalise to humans as humans have higher cognitive function E.g. we do not have the same frontal cortex

Question 27

What does Ferrari et al 2003 demonstrate

Answer 27

Seratonin and dopamine levels are linked to aggression in rats