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neural mechanisms
1. limbic system
  1. central part of brain
    1. involved in processing emotional responses
  2. amygdala
    1. influences aggression in humans and animals
    2. causes aggressive response when stimulated
    3. abnormalities (eg. tumour, damage or atypical development)
      1. levels of testosterone can be raised
        aggressive behaviour is more likely
  3. research
    1. summer
      1. case study of 14-year-old girl with highly aggressive behaviour and epileptic seizures
        shown to have a tumour in the limbic system
        the patient returned to normal aggression levels after the tumour was treated with drugs
    2. kluver and bucy
      1. removed part of the temporal lobes in rhesus monkeys
        destroyed amygdala
        lower levels of aggression
        kluver-bucy syndrome
2. serotonin
  1. inhibitory neurotransmitter
    1. low levels of serotonin = higher levels of aggression
  2. research
    1. cherek
      1. when men take drugs that increase serotonin levels = low levels of aggression
        shows low levels of serotonin = high levels of aggression
3. evaluation
  1. :) evidence to support
    1. delgado - found monkeys attacked other monkeys when the hypothalamus (part of limbic system) was stimulated
      1. similar results with cats
  2. :( hard to establish cause and effect relationship
    1. the limbic system is made up of many different parts
      1. unclear which parts are involved in aggression
      2. could be an interaction between multiple components, not just one
  3. :( individual differences
    1. not everyone is aggressive despite having low levels of serotonin
      1. can't say everyone will react in the same way
hormonal mechanisms
1. testosterone
  1. male sex hormone
  2. thought to influence aggression from young adulthood onwards
    1. due to action on brain areas involved in controlling aggression
  3. higher levels lead to increased aggression
  4. research
    1. beeman
      1. castrated male mice
        aggressiveness reduced
        then re-injected testosterone into the mice
        aggressiveness re-established
    2. dolan
      1. found a positive correlation between testosterone levels and aggressive behaviours
        sample of 60 male offenders in UK maximum security hospitals
2. evaluation
  1. :) evidence to support
    1. dabbs - found higher levels of testosterone in violent offenders than in non-violent offenders
      1. violent
        rapists
      2. non-violent
        burglars
        thieves
      3. measured saliva from 692 adult male prisoners
  2. :( animal research
    1. :) it's unethical to castrate human males to lower their testosterone levels
      1. physical and psychological harm
    2. :( unethical to do conduct research on animals too
    3. :( problems generalising findings from animals to humans
      1. humans are more complex
      2. testosterone may differ from animals to humans
  3. :( research on hormonal mechanisms and aggression is correlational
    1. :) more ethical way to research hormonal mechanisms in aggression
      1. unethical to make someone aggressive by changing their level of testosterone
    2. :( unsure whether abnormality with hormones causes aggression or if a person being aggressive changes their hormonal structure
    3. :( may be other factors affecting aggression
      1. eg. upbringing
  4. :( hormonal and neural mechanisms are deterministic
    1. our aggression is predetermined
    2. :) can make predictions about aggressive behaviour
      1. earlier treatments can be given to prevent future aggressive behaviour
    3. :( not everyone responds in the same way to high levels of testosterone or low levels of serotonin
    4. :( ignores free will

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neural and hormonal mechanisms in aggression

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	Created by yui chen over 3 years ago