Aggression

What this unit covers

The resources here follow the A-level Psychology style of aggression topics, and some are labelled for GCSE Psychology or AQA A-level Psychology. They fall into two broad camps: social psychological explanations and biological explanations. Each camp has its own mind maps, flashcards and notes.

Social psychological explanations

Social learning theory is well represented. The mind map Outline and evaluate one social psychological theory of aggression SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY sets out Bandura and Walters (1963) with AO1 and AO2 branches. Another map explains that, according to Bandura, aggression is learned through direct or vicarious experience. Deindividuation has its own mind map, which describes a state of lowered self-evaluation and reduced concern about evaluation by others. There are also maps on media influences and on institutional aggression, including the importation and deprivation models.

Biological explanations

The mind map on the role of genetic factors on aggression covers twin studies, including McGuffin and Gottesman (1985). The neural and hormonal maps look at the limbic system and the amygdala. The evolutionary maps cover jealousy, sex differences in sexual jealousy and group displays in sports and warfare.

Where to start

1. Take the quiz A2 AQA Psychology Unit 3: Aggression to see which theories you can already name.
2. Open the mind map Aggression mind-map for A2 AQA Psychology for an overview of the topic.
3. Pick one theory and read its map, then try the matching flashcards, such as Aggression - Social Learning Theory.
4. Return to a quiz, such as Aggression - Evolution and human aggression, to check what stuck.

Using quizzes and maps together

Use quizzes to expose gaps, then go to the map for that topic and read the AO1 description before the AO2 evaluation. Flashcard decks on researcher names and key studies are handy for quick recall. This unit sits in the Social Psychology strand of Psychology, so you can also browse neighbouring topics. Pick a topic today and make a map of your own to sum it up.