MISS PROF ONLY
WHY WE HURT OTHER PEOPLE Aggression Definitions Aggression : behavior—verbal or physical —meant to intentionally harm another being Hostile (affective) aggression : anger leads to aggression; primary goal is to make victim suffer Instrumental aggression: primary goal is to attain a non - injurious goal (not make someone suffer) Gender & aggression Males direct aggression Action clearly derived from aggressor & aimed directly at target Females indirect aggression Action NOT clearly derived from aggressor; target may not be aware they are victim of aggression Is it Aggression? 1. A man joins a rugby team. 2. A farmer slaughters a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. 3. A woman tailgates after a driver who passed her on the right. 4. A soldier kills an enemy. 5. A golfer breaks his club over his knee. 6. A hunter kills an elk only for its antlers. 7. Two male college students fight over a female college student. 8. A woman passes along a rumor about another’s affair. 9. A parent spanks a child who has disobeyed. 10. A driver honks at someone who has cut him off. Culture & aggression Culture of honor Strong norms suggest aggression is an appropriate response to an insult or threat to one’s honor Southern US “asshole” studies ( Nisbett & Cohen, 1996) “Honor killings” Family members kills another because victim has “shamed” the family More prevalent in Arab societies Is aggression inborn or learned ? Thomas Hobbes (1651) Leviathan - Aggression is innate Jean -Jacques Rousseau (1762) Humans are the noble savage Sigmund Freud (1930) Eros vs. Thanatos Hydraulic theory Is aggression inborn or learned? Instinct/evolutionary theories An instinct is an unlearned, inherited behavior common to all members of a species Kuo (1961) – cats & rats Lore and Schultz (1993) Universality of aggression = survival value Universality of inhibitory mechanisms = survival value Aggression = optional strategy; use determined by previous social experiences and present social context. Is aggression inborn or learned? Genetics/biology Brain structure Amygdala: brain area associated with aggressive behaviors Left temporal lobe: too much/too little activation here associated with inability to control actions Brain chemicals Serotonin Regulates emotion/social functioning; inhibit aggressive impulses Testosterone associated with increased aggression d oesn’t cause the aggression, but makes you less likely to pay attention to inhibiting situational factors Alcohol and Aggression Alcohol consumption positively related to aggressive behavior (even when unprovoked) Deindividuates Lowers inhibitions Interferes with cognitive processing Physical Violence (Bushman, 1997) Misinterpret accident as purposeful provocation Sexual Violence (Abbey et al., 2001) Misread signals Frustration and Aggression Frustration Upset/annoyance caused by the perception that you are being prevented from attaining a goal Frustration- Aggression Hypothesis the theory that frustration increases the probability of an aggressive response Frustrate the children (Barker , Dembo , & Lewin , 1941) Children were shown a room full of attractive toys.
Half were allowed to play with the toys immediately. Half had to wait behind a wire fence for 20 minutes. Children who had to wait played more destructively .
Closeness to the goal The frustration is unexpected Attributions about the source Hostile attributions Most recent evidence… Frustration produces anger, which may or may not lead to aggression Factors increasing frustration General Aggression Model Bushman & Anderson, 2001 Anderson & Dill, 2000 Study 1: Correlational Demonstrated relationship between exposure to video game violence & aggressive behavior Especially for males with aggressive personalities Correlation = chicken or egg? Study 2: Experimental Manipulated VGV/trait irritability & measured “lab aggression” High irritability = more aggression Violent game = more aggression GAM playing violent games increased accessibility of aggressive thoughts Being provoked and reciprocating After provocation, do we “ turn the other cheek?” • It depends (Johnson & Rule, 1986) … o All Ps received criticism from “commenter” • Strong vs. Insulting o All Ps told “commenter” had just experienced a difficult event • ½ told before getting feedback; ½ told after getting feedback o All Ps had chance to aggress against “commenter” oLeast aggressive = those who learned of the mitigating circumstance BEFORE getting feedback Does frustration always produce aggression? Leonard Berkowitz’s hypothesis Frustration causes anger Anger is a “readiness to aggress” Frustration Anger Aggressive objects as cues An aggressive stimulus is any object that is associated with aggressive responses (e.g., a gun, knife, fist, explosion) Aggressive Cue? No Ye s Less likely to aggress More likely to aggress Frustration Anger Does frustration always produce aggression? College students (Ps) tried to solve a problem. Partner (confederate) in next room evaluated their performance with shocks ½ Ps received 1 shock; ½ Ps received 7 shocks Then the tables turned and Ps waited in another room to test the confederate and deliver shocks IV: item lying beside shock apparatus badminton racquet/birdies revolver/rifle DV: How long did the shocks they delivered to the confederate last? Aggressive Objects as Cues Berkowitz & Le Page (1967) Aggressive Objects as Cues Berkowitz & Le Page (1967) Imitation and Aggression Bandura, Ross, and Ross (1961) Other people as cues Social learning theory: we learn by observing & imitating others (models) Attention – to modeled behavior Retention – becomes part of schema Reproduction – must be able to actually perform behavior Motivation – must have reinforcement for performing behavior Children brought into lab to work on “art project” No model/control: child left alone for 10 minutes Nonaggressive model: adult plays quietly with Tinker toys Aggressive model: adult plays roughly with Bobo doll 0 5 10 15 20 25 No model Nonaggressive model Aggressive model Number of aggressive behaviors Imitation and Aggression Bandura, Ross, and Ross (1961)
