Aggressive Aggression!!!!!!

Aggressive Aggression!!!!!!

1. Evolutionary Explanations

2. Explanations Of Group Display

3. Social Explanations

   • Social Learning Theory
     • Observation; .learning takes place through the observation of models. Seeing others reinforced or punished acts as vicarious reinforcement.
     • Mental Preservation; .Individul forms mental representations of events. Also forms expectations of possible rewards or punishments.
     • Production Of Behaviour; .Aggression maintained through direct reinforcement. Likelehood of aggression increased if high self efficacy for production
     • Evaluation; .SLT demonstrated in young children observing aggressive adult role models (Bobo doll experiment - Bandura et al. 1961). Imitated model, but only if model was rewarded for heir behaviour, (Bandura and Walters - 1963). Learning takes place regardless of outome, but production linked only to reinforcement. SLT also applies to aggression in adults (phillips 1986) - homicide rates in relation to US boxing matches. It can explain aggression in absence of direct reinforcement. Can also explain individual differences and context- dependent learning. Problem of demand charachteristics in Bobo doll study. Cultural differences - absence of aggressive models among Kung san.
   • Deindividuation
     • Nature of Deindividuation; .Reduced self-evaluation; decreased concern about evaluation by others. Leads to an increase in antisocial behaviour. More likely when anonymous, in a large crowd or drunk.
     • Process Of Deindividuation; .Social norms usually inhibit antisocial behaviour. Ihibitions removed when deindividuated. Conditions that increase anonymity weaken barriers to antisocial behaviour.
     • Research on Deindividuation; .Faceless crowd - lynchings more savage when large crowds (Mullen 1986) Baiting crowd (Mann 1981).
     • Reduced Private Self Awareness; .Reduced self-awareness more important than anonymity. In large crowds, less able to self regulate behaviour.
     • Evaluation; .Anonymity - (Zimbardo 1969) found longeer shocks when anonymous. Local group norms - people respond to normative cues within the social context. Meta - analysis (Postmes and Spears 1998) - insufficient support for claims of theory. Evidence of online aggression when deindividuated (francis et al. 2006) Deindividuation may increas prosocial behaviour in some situations. Cultural difference - Cultures that change appearance more brutal in war (watson 1973).
   • Institutional Agression
     • Prison Violence;
       • Importation model; .Prisoners import their violent behaviours into prison. Gang membership - pre prison gang membership is an important determinant of prison misconduct. Deprivation model - a reaction to stressful conditions of prison. Sykes (1958) specific deprivations within prison linked to increase in violence.
       • Evaluation; . Importation model - support from studies prisons (Harer and Steffenmeiser 2006). DeLiser et al. (2004) challenges the claim that pre-prison gang membership predicts violence. Deprivation model - support from prison stuidies but not psychiatric institutions. Deprivation model explains violence against staff - importation model explains violence against other inmates (Jiang and Fisher-Giorlando 2002).
     • Genocide

4. Biological Approaches

   • NUeral Explanations
   • Hormonal Explanations
   • Genetic Factors