Topic 8: Aggression and Violent Offending

Question 1

What is aggression?

Answer 1

no simple answer

Bartol (2001) “behavior perpetrated or attempted with the intention of harming another individual physically or psychologically”

should we include passive-aggressive behavior? –> almost never criminal

certain forms of humor?

Question 2

What is hostile (expressive) aggression?

Answer 2

aggression for its own sake

usually done out of intense anger, arousal, excitement

e.g. rape (some forms), beatings, most homicides

tends to be episodic

often in response to real or perceived provocation

Question 3

What is instrumental aggression?

Answer 3

directed toward someone who poses an obstacle to the attainment of a goal, often material

intention isn’t necessarily to harm to injure

nevertheless, contracted hits fall uncomfortably into this category

as a rule, only the “necessary” amount of force is utilized

Question 4

What is homicide?

Answer 4

multiple murder: usually means three or more

serial, spree, mass

rare, but commands vast media and public attention; stays in memory

Question 5

What are recent examples of homicide?

Answer 5

Taber/Columbine

9/11

Edmonton gang slayings

Question 6

What are infamous examples of homicide?

Answer 6

Jeff Dahmer
John Wayne Gacy
Jack the Ripper
Manson family
the Hillside stranglers

Question 7

Why does homicide appear to be on the rise?

Answer 7

wider proliferation of semi-automatic weapons

may be an artifact of improved police communication/database construction

i.e. ability to link cases previous considered unrelated

recall: “case linkage analysis”

Question 8

What is serial murder?

Answer 8

refers to pattern of killing one at a time

murders separated by “cooling off period” lasting days to years

victims have historically been young, disenfranchised females (runaways, prostitutes)

more recently, children of either gender

often chosen on the basis of availability rather than specific features

Question 9

What are the characteristics of the perpetrator of serial murder?

Answer 9

surprisingly late onset of serious criminal behavior (24 to 40, median = 36)

seldom have significant juvenile history

may have records for petty nonsense

avoid arrest for average for about four years after onset of killig

average rate of killing is about four victims per year

Question 10

What are perpetrators of serial murder hard to catch?

Answer 10

difficult to catch because they pick on individuals that are not immediately missed, and who are usually strangers or casual acquaintances

i.e. nothing links them to the crime

contrary to media portrayals, they don’t usually bust into people’s homes randomly looking for someone to kill

as a result of these factors, murders go up when more people are rendered homeless

economic downturns, precipitous release of psych patients

when they’re caught, it’s often a matter of coincidence or sloppiness on their part

Question 11

What are the characteristics of female serial killers?

Answer 11

more likely to:
be financially motivated
use poisons rather than direct violence
act in concert with a male offender

Question 12

What are the different subtypes of serial murders defined by Holmes and DeBurger (1988)?

Answer 12

visionary

mission-oriented

hedonistic: lust and thrill

power/control

Question 13

What is an example of the visionary subtype of serial murderers?

Answer 13

David Berkowitz (Son of Sam)

Question 14

What is the visionary subtype of serial murderers?

Answer 14

most likely of all types of be psychotic

may claim he’s responding to command hallucinations

Question 15

What is an example of the missionary subtype of serial murderers?

Answer 15

Adolf Hitler

Question 16

What is the missionary subtype of serial murderers?

Answer 16

believes it is necessary and justifiable to rid the world of a certain class of individual (e.g. religious groups, prostitutes, teachers)

unlikely to be psychotic, but may later claim otherwise

may have elaborately developed beliefs around the group he targets

Question 17

What is an example of the hedonistic subtype of serial murderers?

Answer 17

John Wayne Gacy
Hillside stranglers
Jeff Dahmer

Question 18

What is the hedonistic subtype of serial murderers?

Answer 18

this class includes homicidal sexual sadists (lust)

enjoys the actual process of killing

in the case of sexual sadists, the pain and suffering of a victim adds to arousal

tend to be well-prepared, a few have had elaborate torture chambers set up in isolated locations

may include audio/videotape equipment

death is slow and painful

Question 19

What is the power/control subtype of serial murderers?

Answer 19

derives pleasure from victims’ helplessness and pleas for mercy

may also sexually assault

Question 20

What are the two subtypes of serial murders added by Bartol (2001)?

Answer 20

recognition seeker: appears driven by desire for publicity

material gain seeker: in it for the money

Question 21

What is spree murder?

Answer 21

typically kill in a short period of time

no cooling off period

often occurs while fleeing from another crime, e.g. bank robbery

may be done in a state of panic

not usually repeated

Question 22

What is mass murder?

Answer 22

victims killed all at once

murders tend to occur quickly, with little warning

may communicate intentions to disbelieving others ahead of time

tends to be well planned

assailant’s own death by suicide or police bullet may be part of the plan

Question 23

What are examples of mass murder?

Answer 23

Jimmy Jones

Marc Lepine

Newtown Connecticut

Question 24

What are the stats on the commonality of school shootings?

Answer 24

9 seperate incidents so far in 2021 in the USA alone; all where fatal

41 injuries: most recent was Oct. 17 2021, this is despite many schools delivering instruction online

Question 25

What are the characteristics of a perpetrator of a school shooting?

Answer 25

assailant usually targets specific individuals, or representatives (symbols) of their perceived oppressors perpetrators generally suffer from feelings of anger, frustration, or sense of profound loss (could be a job); withdrawn, isolated well armed, not looking for a fair fight high capacity assault rifles are common in US (e.g. M16, AK-47) in Canada, multiple weapons, or lots of spare ammo seen more frequently (e.g. Ottawa bus barns)

Question 26

What is Type I workplace violence?

Answer 26

perp has no prior relationship to location e.g. liquor store, gas station hits injury to others is usually instrumental

Question 27

What is Type II workplace violence?

Answer 27

former client/customer that feels mistreated

Question 28

What is Type III workplace violence?

Answer 28

disgruntled employee most media attention

Question 29

What is Type IV workplace violence?

Answer 29

location is incidental perp is after someone that works there extension of domestic violence

Question 30

What is workplace violence?

Answer 30

related in some ways to the school shooter sense of being humiliated or mistreated financial situation may be such that losing income has catastrophic personal consequences: often claims he acted in desperation limited flexibility, has views that support the use of force or violence

Question 31

What is the representative profile of a workplace violence perpetrator?

Answer 31

white male, 35 to 45 years of age migratory job history loner with little or no family or social support chronically disgruntled externalizes blame; rarely accepts responsibility for things gone wrong takes criticism poorly identifies with violence more than a casual user of drugs and/or alcohol keen interest in firearms and other dangerous weapons

Question 32

What are the warning signs for workplace violence?

Answer 32

repeated violations of company polices fascination with violent and/or sexually explicit movies or publications escalation of domestic problems large withdrawals from, or closing of account in the company's credit union increased use of alcohol and/or illegal drugs unexplained increase in absenteeism noticeable decrease in attention to appearance and hygiene depression and withdrawal explosive outbursts of anger or rage without provocation threatens or verbally abuses co-workers and supervisors repeated comments that indicate suicidal tendencies frequent, vague physical complaints noticeably unstable emotional responses suspicious or paranoid behavior preoccupation with previous incidents of violence increased mood swings resistance and over-reaction to changes in procedures increase of unsolicited comments about firearms and other dangerous weapons empathy with individuals committing violence

Question 33

What is the psychodynamic theory of aggression/violence?

Answer 33

it's a result of "bottled up" energy and a lack of appropriate catharsis

Question 34

What is the prediction of psychodynamic theory of aggression/violence?

Answer 34

direct (e.g. boxing) or indirect (e.g., violent video games) exposure to aggressive activities should lessen risk for aggressive behavior it doesn't! on the other hand, Megargee's work on over controlled hostility showed that individuals that commit highly violent, out of character acts typically score high on OH and shyness measures than "habitual" criminals

Question 35

What is the Excitation Transfer Hypothesis proposed by Zillman (1988)?

Answer 35

the stage can be set for aggression in one situation, and it is acted out in another to a casual onlooker it seems like "flying off the handle" or reacting with excessive vigor to a small provocation

Question 36

What is the ethological theory of aggression/violence that was proposed by Lorenz?

Answer 36

aggressive behavior is a biological imperative selected by millions of years of evolution a reaction to territory challenges most species show ritualized aggression (e.g., head butting) that results in little or no injury to either party these end in appeasement behaviors that signal the end of conflict

Question 37

What is the problem with the ethological theory of aggression/violence that was proposed by Lorenz?

Answer 37

even highly dangerous animals with claws, venom, etc., don't (typically) kill their own kind; we do routinely Lorenz, that's because our technological weapons develop so quickly that evolution can't possibly keep up

Question 38

What is the frustration-aggression hypothesis of aggression/violence that was proposed by Dollard et al. (1939)?

Answer 38

aggression is the natural consequence of frustration

Question 39

What are extinction bursts in the frustration-aggression hypothesis of aggression/violence that was proposed by Dollard et al. (1939)?

Answer 39

an increase in the strength and frequency of operant responding when expected reinforcement is no longer delivered

Question 40

What is the frustration-aggression hypothesis of aggression/violence that was proposed by Dollard et al. (1939)?

Answer 40

an increase in the strength and frequency of operant responding when expected reinforcement is no longer delivered

Question 41

What are the problems with the frustration-aggression hypothesis of aggression/violence that was proposed by Dollard et al. (1939)?

Answer 41

what is frustration? how do you measure it? how do you explain instrumental aggression? most instances of frustration do not end in aggression

Question 42

What is the revised F-A hypothesis of aggression/violence that was proposed by Berkowitz (1969)?

Answer 42

three stages: 1. person is blocked from obtaining a goal; frustration results 2. frustration engenders anger 3. anger increases the chances of aggression emerging, but this depends greatly on learning history, and the presence of other aggression-elevating stimuli

Question 43

What stages were added to the revised F-A hypothesis of aggression/violence by Berkowitz in 1983?

Answer 43

frustrated individual sees the impediment as deliberate frustrated individual sees the impediment as illegitimate: resulting affect is subjectively unpleasant any act that lowers it is likely to eb negatively reinforced

Question 44

What is the social learning theory of aggression/violence that was proposed by Bandura (1973)?

Answer 44

the learning conditions most apt to result in aggression are... 1. plenty of observation of aggressive behavior 2. reinforcement for aggression: happens all the time, and quite naturally e.g., better toys, others backing down, social prestige (to a point) most effective over the short term 3. being the target of others' aggression

Question 45

What is the physiological theory of aggression/violence?

Answer 45

higher testosterone (young males only), low serotonin, PMS, high ambient temperatures, high population density

Question 46

What are controls in the physiological theory of aggression/violence?

Answer 46

psychosurgery tranquilizers / atypical antipsychotics SSRIs anti-androgenetic steroids (chemical castration) - mostly for sexual offenders