key question - biological

Question 1

Aggression

Answer 1

behaviour aimed at harming others

Question 2

What can cause aggression

Answer 2

• nature
• nurture

Question 3

Nature

Answer 3

biological causes of behaviour

Question 4

Nurture

Answer 4

behaviour formed through environment

Question 5

Aggression, if nurture

Answer 5

• someone can choose not to behave aggressively
• avoiding environments which may trigger aggression

Question 6

Aggression, if nature

Answer 6

• comes from our biology, which we cannot control

Question 7

If we learn to control our innate aggression, what should we be blamed for

Answer 7

• our actions
• for not controlling aggression

Question 8

If we can’t control our aggression, what shouldn’t we be blamed for

Answer 8

• our actions
• imprisonment isn’t ethical
• we should not be blamed for something we cannot help

Question 9

Anxiety and depression -

Answer 9

• biological
• gets treatment

Question 10

Aggression and anger

Answer 10

• biological
• gets punished = unfair of society to sympathise with 1 emotion and blame another

Question 11

A03 - aggression in animals

Answer 11

• can be provoked
• by provoking limbic system, e.g hypothalamus
• shows aggression is due to nature
• however animals aren’t punished for displaying this innate aggression

Question 12

Charles Whitman

Answer 12

• 1966 killed many people in US
• discovered a brain tumour pressing on his limbic system
• aggression due to nature = not his fault
• aggression is linked to limbic system (Adelson 2004)

Question 13

Hormones - aggression

Answer 13

• cortisol and testosterone
• Barzman - found saliva collected 30 minutes after waking up correlated with number of aggressive acts reported by nurses

Question 14

Hormones - aggression counterargument

Answer 14

• Cortisol = stress hormone triggered by environment
• environmental factors have control over our behaviour
• this is nurture not nature

Question 15

How does theory of natural selection explain aggression

Answer 15

• Males may react aggressively to protect offspring/mate = to protect their genes
• genes with aggressive tendency to survive are more likely to be passed on through reproduction
• society cannot blame someone for the genes they inherit = punishment would not be useful

Question 16

How could punishment help with learnt aggression

Answer 16

• e.g imprisonment
• to teach a lesson

Question 17

will punishment work with aggression that is innate

Answer 17

• no
• someone cannot unlearn it

Question 18

Aggression treatments if nature =

Answer 18

• punishment can be used

Question 19

what learning theory is punishment linked to

Answer 19

operant conditioning

Question 20

operant conditioning

Answer 20

• if someone is rewarded for behaviour they will repeat it
• if someone is punished for behaviour they won’t repeat it

Question 21

Raine et al

Answer 21

• found brain differences using PET scans
• murderers who said they were NGRI had brain differences compared to non - murderers

Question 22

if nature is the cause of aggression ,how could we treat it

Answer 22

• biological treatments
• drugs
• hormone

Question 23

aggressive acts - stats

Answer 23

• 80% increase in knife crime
• knife crime makes up 29% of all violent crime
• over 2 million domestic violence victims
• £51,624 per year to have a prisoner
• over 5 years there’s been a 37% increases in violent crime against females

Question 24

Freud

Answer 24

• argued people were aggressive due to their ID which wasn’t controlled properly
• people had a stronger thanatos = drive to destruction

Question 25

Brain structure = amygdala

Answer 25

- regulates emotions - threat detection - damage can alter function = increasing aggression

Question 26

Phineas Gage

Answer 26

- damaged pre - frontal cortex - involved in decision making - went from responsible and mild mannered to erratic and rude