Problem 5 Aggression Flashcards
(38 cards)
Nature-nurture controversy
genetic or environmental factors determine human behaviour. Scientist generally accept that it’s an interaction of both
Instinct
Inborne drive or impulse genetically transmitted
→goal directed – e.g. attack
→beneficial to the individual
→adapted – to a normal environment
→shared by most members of the species
→developed
→unlearned on the basis of individual experienced
Fighting instinct
Innate impulse to aggress which ethologists claim is shared by humans with other animals
Social learning theory
that aggression is not inborn but learned from appropriate models
Learning by direct experience
Learning behaviour we were rewarded for our behaviour.
Learning by vicarious experience
Learning behaviour we were rewarded for our behaviour.
Modelling
tendency for a person to copy behaviour, attitudes and emotions of real-life or symbolic model. Also called observational learning
Learning a script
(a schema about an event)
Type A personality
a behavioural correlate of heart disease characterised by striving to achieve, time urgency, competitiveness and hostility
→more prone to abuse children, prefer to work alone to avoid the incompetence of others.
Disinhibition
A breakdown in the learnt controls against behaving impulsively or in this context aggressive (out of character)
Deindividuation
Process whereby people lose their sense of social norms
Collective aggression
Unified by a group of individuals against another individual group
General aggression model
A model that includes personal and situational factors, and cognitive and affective processes in accounting for different kinds of aggression
The weapons effect
the presence of a weapon increases the probability that it will be used aggressively
Biosocial theories
context of aggression theories that emphasise an innate component, though not the existence of a full-blown instinct
Frustration-aggression hypothesis
all frustration leads to aggression, and all aggression comes from frustration
Excitation-transfer model
The expression of aggression is a function of: A learnt aggressive behaviour, trigger from another source, and the persons interpretation of the trigger state, such that an aggressive response seems appropriate
Desensitisation
a serious reduction in a persons responsiveness in view of violence or sexuality
Neo-associationist analysis
A view of aggression according to which mass media may provide images of violence to the audience that later translate into antisocial acts
fight and flight
when you think your resources are equally large or larger than your needs you fight when they are smaller you will flee
Hate crime
A class of violence against members of a stereotyped minority group
Subculture violence
A subgroup of society in which a higher level of violence is accepted as the norm
Machismo
A code in which challenges, abuse and even differences of opinion must be met with fists or other weapons
Intimate partner violence
→evolutionary perspective: fear is a natural response to threat that reduces exposure to physical danger
→biological perspective: oxytocin is a hormone that regulates several reproductive and maternal behaviours. When released responding to danger it mediates the reduction of stress associated with fear
→Intimate partner violence: Oxytocin decreases stress and increases the likelihood of female aggression
→cultural norms
