Aggression

Aggression

1. Psychodynamic theory of aggression

   • Psychodynamic explanations Sigmund Freud famously believed that humans are driven by strong unconscious aggressive instincts which the more rational part of our mind controls. This rational part of our mind, sometimes called the ego, is therefore important in making us behave in a socially acceptable way.
     • On occasion, however, the ego can fail and we can become dangerously aggressive. Ego defence mechanisms: Later psychologists developed this theory by suggesting that we may have aggression building up inside us, but that this aggression only spills out when something frustrates us.
       • Something as simple as spilling a drink or getting stuck in traffic can trigger aggression which we burn off by shouting, swearing or hitting something.
   • Megargee and Mendelsohn (1962) wanted to know if personality type had an influence on levels of aggression. They did this by giving convicted criminals guilty of highly aggressive crimes a personality test. What many of them had in common was a period of time leading up to the crime in which they were ‘over controlled’ and their repressed anger eventually built up to a point where it could no longer be controlled. The researchers concluded that anger needs to be vented safely and frequently to prevent uncontrollable outbursts of aggression.
     • Barker; Aim: to see the effects of frustration on anger. Method: CHildren were taken to a room full of attractive toys but told they couldn't play with any. When they finals were allowed to play, their behaviour was observed. Results: The children were more aggressive and destructive than children in the control group who had not been told to wait. Conclusion: frustration does lead to aggressive behaviour

2. Social Learning

   • This is the theory that people learn their behaviour by observing others. Children are particularly likely to imitate role models, older siblings, peers or their parents. If they witness aggressive behaviour and see that the outcome is positive, it is likely that they will take on this form of behaviour too.
     • Action heroes in film and video games may cause individuals to behave more aggressively. They may also witness people getting their way when aggression is used. Children may even learn aggression from parents when they use physical forms of punishment in the home.
       • Monitoring: Social learning doesn’t always have to be external. People will also monitor their own behaviour and judge whether this kind of behaviour has made them feel good or bad. If a certain course of behaviour tends to give us a negative feeling then we are not likely to repeat this behaviour in the future. If an act of aggression has made us feel good there is a strong chance that we will behave in this way again.

3. Biological

   • Hormones: One explanation for aggression is that it is caused by hormones, most particularly testosterone. There is more testosterone in males than in females and is found in even higher levels in violent criminals.
     • Young et al. (1959) set out to discover if hormones have an effect on levels of aggressive behaviour. To do this he injected pregnant rhesus monkeys with testosterone and monitored the behaviour of the offspring after they were born. He found that the females behaved very much like the male monkeys. They were far more physical in their playing and even fought with the male monkeys in a bid to climb the social hierarchy. Young et al concluded that hormones play a role in causing aggressive forms of behaviour.
   • Chromosomes: Violent criminals are often found to have chromosomal abnormalities i.e. a high number of criminals have an extra Y-chromosome. It is believed that this XYY structure may cause more aggression.
     • Raine (1997) wanted to know if there were differences in the brains of murderers and non-murderers. He did this my giving 41 murderers a PET scan, which shows levels of activity in each section of the brain. He found that murderers had lower levels of activity in the prefrontal cortex, which lead Raine to conclude that when this part of the brain is not functioning as it should, levels of aggression can increase hugely.
   • Brain disease can affect the limbic system and/or the prefrontal cortex, parts of the brain which deal with the way we behave. The limbic system is associated with aggression and the prefrontal cortex serves to control this aggression. When these mechanistic controls break down the individual can lose control of his behaviour.