Week 6) Aggression Flashcards
Distinguish btn aggression and anger?
aggression=behaviour
anger=feeling. Angry can be directed and channelled positively.
What is aggression?
” any behaviour directed toward another individual that is carried out with the proximate (immediate) intent to cause harm.” (Anderson & Bushman, 2002)
Note to rule out consensual harm (e.g., dentistry, sado-masochistic sex) another proviso is usually added:
• “The target must be motivated to AVOID the behaviour.“
When does aggression peak in our lives and why?
age 2-4, the only way we know how to communicate with ppl then is through actions e.g. hurting them.
What is violence?
Violence is aggression that has extreme harm as its goal (e.g. severe injury or death).
Is all violence aggression?
Yes, but not all aggression is violent e.g. relational aggression doesnt necessarily involve physical injury.
We will now look at different sub disciplines of aggression.
cool !
What is Lorenz’s Hydraulic hypothesis about aggression?
Aggression is a force that builds relentlessly without cause from the environment. It simply is something that needs to be released regularly or it will keep building up.
Instinctual aggression then “pushes” it out.
e.g., male doves prevented from mating have an excess of ‘pent up’ energy. Was basis for catharsis hypothesis
Completely untrue btw. Now disproven
(also could be referred to as the energy model i believe) a bit confused here.
When are animals used for research on aggression?
What might the problems be with using animals ?
where ethically impossible to test humans (e.g., drugs).
• Problems with generalising to humans
What sets us as humans apart from animals?
Big frontal lobe, gives us more control.
Animals can still control aggression but less easily.
Under the sub dis of clinical psychology, what disorders are related to aggression?
DSM-IV: • Anti-social, Narcissistic, Borderline, Paranoid personality disorders • Conduct Disorder in children • Addiction, esp. alcohol, amphetamines, ice • Paranoia, delusions, psychosis • Sadism, masochism • Intermittent explosive disorder • Adjustment disorder with conduct disturbance • Problems related to abuse or neglect
Treatment in clinical therapy?
• Conflict management, relationship systems, anger management, counselling for aggression
Interventions for anger or aggression must address specific aspects; integration of approaches where complex (e.g., DV)
What is the sub discipline of cognitive psychology referring to when discussing aggression? What does it mean?
Neural networks and information processing.
Idea that when we experience something, a cluster of neurons (a node) is set aside to recognise it again.
Nodes that are activated together become wired together.
The more often nodes are activated together, the stronger the links become.
Because of these links, activating one node will begin to activate linked nodes
Therefore if the same sequence of events plays out often enough, either in real life, or vicariously through:
- seeing it in real life
- seeing it in the media
- playing it on a video game - etc.
Then it becomes like a script that plays out the same way whenever it is triggered
What is the cognitive neo association theory
hint sub discipline is cognitive psych
brain wires two things together if they happen together.
Assumes that memories, emotions, thoughts and plans for action are linked together in the brain in just this way.
e.g. frustration linked with node of anger, linked with swear words, linked with becoming violent.
• The parts that are most strongly activated are the parts that will have the greatest influence on that person’s eventual actions.
How does the neo association theory explain how one might get angry over something little like an annoying sound.
- Unpleasant or threatening situations (e.g., frustration, provocation, perceived threats, loud noises etc.), arouse negative feelings
- These in turn stimulate various thoughts, memories and physiological responses associated with both fight tendencies and flight tendencies
- Fight tendencies= anger
- Flight tendencies = fear
- Fight tendencies=
* Flight tendencies =
- Fight tendencies= anger
* Flight tendencies = fear
What is script theory?
• When a situation is very familiar we tend to play things out in a similar way most times until the response becomes automatic whenever that situation arises (domestic violence can occur in this way)
