Midterm 3: Aggression
4 dimensions of aggression
Proactive vs reactive
Physical vs relational
Proximal vs dismal
Hostile vs instrumental
Agression in terms of who
Between groups
Between individuals
Within self
Aggression being good for evolution
Aggression is an adaptation because it promotes chances of survival and reproduction.
If our ancestors didn't aggress, we wouldnt have the same life right now.
Sexual size dimorphism
When the males in a species are bigger than the females because when females are choosy about their mates, they will choose the bigger males who pass down their bigger size genes.
Territorial intergroup aggression
When intergroup aggression leads to territory expansion in wild chimps.
Infantcide
The murder of a young member of a species by an older one.
Often happens to a child of the dominant male monopolizing mating rights of all the females. The other male gets frustrated, so they take it out on the baby.
In lions, it allows the lioness to be avaliable for reproduction quicker.
Modular view of the brain
The brain contains a number of different modules.
There are ones to act aggressive or ones to act commpassionate, it just depends on which you prioritize.
How much of variability in aggression can be attributed to genes?
50-65%
The Diathesis-Stress Model
The idea that our genetics predisposes us to mental illness when those genetics interact with enviornmental factors. Same thing apples to aggression.
MAOA Study and it's corresponding concept
There are 2 types of MAOA Genes for neurotransmitter breadown, one that is high and one that is low. When looking at mistreatment and stress men suffered in their childhood, they found that the more aggressive ones tend to have the low MAOA Gene.
Though to influence how sensitive they are to maltreatment, which would impact their impulsivity.
Concept: Diathesis-stress model
Seritonin-deficincy hypothesis
The idea that we act more aggressively when we have low levels of seritonin.
Rat Seritonin study and its corresponding concepts
Measured rat's agression by looking at whether they attack first, how much they attack and for how long when something intrudes on its territory. Those that were bred to have lower seritonin levels are more docile.
Concept: Serotonin decificeny hypothesis
Borderline Personality Disorder and Serotonin Study and its corresponding concept
Impulse aggression is a key feature in BPD as a reaction to abandoment. When serotonin levels are increased in their head, the levels of aggression decreased.
Concept: Serotonin definciency hypothsis
Serotonin and Suicide Meta-analysis and corresponding concept
Individuals who kill themselves tend to do it in a more violent way if they have less serotonin.
Concet: serotonin deficiency hypothesis
Testosterone Study and its corresponding concept
The amount of testosterone someone is exposed to in the womb could be measured with the 2D-4D ratio of the fingertips. The smaller the ratio, the bigger likelihood of aggression.
Concept: hormones have an impact on/cause aggression
The Challenge Hypothesis
A more reliable measure of aggression than testosterone levels are fluctuating testosterone levels.
Testosterone arises in males due to opportunities and challenges, which promotes aggression, which would decrease as they become fathers.
Philipine Father Study and its corresponding concept
Fathers in the Philipines has their bodies measured twice a day for testosterone fluctuations. The newer they were to parenting and the more childrearing they did, they more their testosterone levels fluctuated.
Concept: the challenge hypothesis
Brain structure influencing aggression
Hypothalamus: different types of aggression activates different parts of the hypothalamus.
Amygdala: the pleasure cortex in the brain. The Kluver-Bruce Syndrome is how when the amygdala is damaged, people get less aggressive. When it is activated, they become more aggressive.
Prefrontal Cortext: ultimately whether or not we choose to actually take the actions to aggress or not.
Emotions that drive aggression
Anger, fear, pleasure
Frustration aggression theory of anger
People aggress because they get angry and frustrated, only when they are upsert.
Unjustified frustration turns to anger and aggressive cues leads to aggression.
Annoyance Sound Study and its corresponding concepts
Measured actvitiy in the nucleus accumbus as the participant is annoyed with a loud sound as they are doing a task. If the retaliate, the loudness of the sound they make back is compared with this brain activity. The louder the retaliation sound, the more activity in the nucelus accumbus, suggesting it causes pleasure because that is what the nucleus accumbus is from.
Concept: aggression comes from pleasure
Enviornmental factor of aggression researched
Alcohal.
After consuming alcohal, blood alcohal concentration ascends and then descends again. When it is desecnding, people are more likely to get aggressive.
In studies, they are more likely to administer more painful shocks in that state.
Frustration
Anything that blocks us from attaining a goal.
We have a strong motivation to achieve a goal, we expect graditude and it gets blocked.
Displacement
The redirection of anger to a target other than the source of frsutration.
Happens because it is not socially acceptable to target the origonal victim.
New scapegoat often shares similarities with the victim and has done something to trigger the aggression.
Relative deprivation
Knowing that you are not as well off as others that you are comparing yourself to. Frustration forms between the gaps of our expectations and actual achievements and we aggress more.
Social learning theory
the idea that we learn social behaviour by observing, imitating an being rewarded/punished.
Aggression could be learned through observations and noting consequences.
Even if we are emotionally aroused, we might not actually aggress depending on the consequences we anitcipate.
Aggression is much more likely if we are emotionally aroused and when it is safe and rewarding for us to aggress.
Influences of aggression
Arousal, aggression cues, the media, group context
Arousal and aggression
Aversive situations will lead to hostile thoughts/memories, angry feeling, and arounsal, leading to a greater likelihood of percieveing harm and reacting aggressively.
The Weapons Effect
The prescences of weapons insreases aggresive thoughts and behaviours because they act as aggression cues, which trigger aggression.
Aggression in pornography
Sexual violence is common, distoring people's perceptions of it and encouraging it. Those that consumer more seuxal violent content are more likely to be more sexually violent themselves.
When does violent media especially encourage more violence?
When the person already has violent tendencies and the character in the media is attractive and faces no consequences.
Why they train solders by making them play video games:
Encourages aggressive believes and attitudes, aggressive perception, aggressive expectations, aggressive social scripts, aggression desensitilization.
Social scripts
Culturally provided mental instructions on how to act in certain situations that we rely on in new situations when we don't know how to act.
The cartharsis hypothesis
Aggressive drive can be reduced when they release tht energy by acting aggressively, which had proven to be false. Aggression only bigets more aggression.