3. Observation - Social Learning Theory Explanation The social
learning theory of aggression suggests that we learn via
observation of others (models). Skinners rats highlighted the
operant conditioning theory that behaviour is taught be direct
reinforcement. Children observe and learn through one main way:
vicarious learning Watching others get rewarded or punished for
behaviour and imitating them depending on the consequences.
Children witness examples of aggressive behaviour either at school,
home, television or newspapers. By observing the consequences of
that person, they will go onto choose whether they copy it or not.
They may also learn by Reciprocal determinism This is when an
individuals and environment interact and impact on each other
shaping our behaviour. Similar to the previous learning process, we
allow what we see or hear to help shape our behaviour
unintentionally. Evidence Bandura, ross + ross Children watched a
short film in which the model behaved aggressively Out of three
groups, the model has various consequences: Model-rewarded,
Model-punished and No-consequence. Children were then put in a room
of toys and given 10 minutes to play and do as they pleased. The
results showed that those in the model-punished group were less
aggressive but was little difference between the other two.
Evaluating studies There was no difference between the
no-consequence group and rewarded group indicating that they do not
always follow models Evaluating theory IDAs Reductionist Only
focusing on the social aspect of behaviour, not how it could be
biological Ethical issues Exposing children from behaviour needs to
be regulated to ensure children are protected from harm
General
4. Modelling Social learning theory Explanation The theory also
suggests we learn through the process of Modelling. This involves 4
main stages. Firstly, attention person plays attention to the
actions of model. Secondly, retention Remembering behaviour that
was observed. Thirdly, Motor reproduction the ability to replicate
the behaviour. And finally, Motivation must want to show what they
have learned. Again, there are two variations of the modelling
process: Self efficiency People are more likely to engage in
behaviours if they believe they are capable of achieving them and
Self- regulation When an individual has their own ideas of what is
appropriate or inappropriate behaviour and chooses to act
accordingly. Evidence Bandura, Ross and Ross 36 boys and 36 girls
were placed in a room for 20 minutes to play with toys. Before they
could play with the toys, a model entered the room and set up some
toys. In the non aggressive group, the model did this normally, but
in the aggressive group, the model was aggressive to the doll and
to other toys. Children were left to play with the toys and 70% of
those in the non-aggressive group had an aggressive rating of 0 Men
were also found to be more influential than women Evaluating
studies Because only 70% were given 0 in the non-aggressive groups
shows that the other 30% had no reason to be aggressive but were
anyway proving it hasnt got everything to do with models Evaluating
theory IDAs Gender bias In Banduras study, men were ore influential
as aggressive models than women proving stereotypes Nature vs
Nurture Heavily reliant on nurture and how the environment shapes
us General Can explain individual differences and personalities
differ in aggression
5. Deindividuation theory
6. Deindividuation theory Explanation The deindivduation theory
is based on the classic crowd. It is the idea that people lose
their identity in a big crowd of people so feel it is acceptable to
act differently to how they normally would. When anonymity,
suggestibility and contagion are combined, a collective mind takes
a hold of the individual. It is a psychological state of mind where
a person feels less concerned about others. This leads to an
increase in behaviour which would otherwise not be allowed
according to our social norms. Simple: Anonymity in a crowd causes
the deindivduation which gives an excuse to be aggressive. Factors
that influence this could be uniforms, crowds, alcohol or drugs.
Evidence Zimbardo Created a stimulated prison of 24 male
participants. Half were assigned to be guards and the other were
prisoners. The guards wore reflective glasses, uniform and carried
hand cuffs. Whereas the prisoners wore lose smocks and were only
referred to by number. The guards created a brutal atmosphere
becoming aggressive verbally and physically. Both participants
showed classic signs of deindivduation. Zimbardo Four females were
asked to give shocks to the learners to help them learn. Half the
participants wore bulky lab coats, addressed as a group and were
not introduced to each other whilst the remaining half wore their
normal clothes, given instructions individually and were introduced
to each other before hand. Those who were covered up and had their
identity stolen gave shocks for twice as long proving that
deindivduation causes people to become more brutal and aggressive.
Real life examples of deindivduation London riots; everyone joined
in just for the sake of it
7. Deindividuation theory Evaluating studies In the female
Zimbardo's studies, only one gender is used which subsequently
means it cannot be applied to the opposite gender. The simulated
prison study was in a real life environment so has high ecological
validity. Evaluating theory IDAs Deterministic we dont all conform
and act aggressive in a crowd, individual differences. Reductionist
Heavily focused on the behavioural approach Nature vs Nurture
Focused on nurture and environment General Real life examples as
stated previously are evidence of deindivduation
8. Importation model Deprivation theory Institutional
aggression
9. Deprivation theory -Institutional aggression Explanation:
Human aggression in general could be interpersonal or
institutional. Interpersonal is direct actions against a specific
individual whereas institutional aggression may occur within
groups. For example, the army, prisons or mental institutions. The
deprivation theory looks into factors regarding why there is
aggression in prisons. These could be sexual, boredom, picked on
for crime or racial. Evidence: Sykes Outlined 5 main deprivations
which prisoners experience: 1) G Deprivation of Goods and services
Have no personal possessions, feel like they are living in poverty
2) A Deprivation of Autonomy Now power or control, leading to a
feeling of helplessness, this equals aggression 3) H Deprivation of
Heterosexual relationships Denied female companionship decreasing
self worth and increasing anger 4) L Deprivation of Liberty
Prisoner isn't trusted in the free world and is rejected by society
leading to feelings of anger 5) S Deprivation of Security Prisoners
fear for their safety and become aggressive too stop others being
aggressive towards them Evaluating studies: Hard to gain an
accurate knowledge of what prisoners feel unless they have actually
been one themselves. Evaluating theory: IDAs Reductionist Only
applies to prison behaviour, may not be applied to other
institution's Nature vs nurture Nature explains personality traits,
nurture environment (institution) shapes us Gender bias tends to be
male research e.g male prison General Can explain the type A
personality
10. Importation model -Institutional aggression Explanation:
Prisoners bring their own social histories and traits with them
into prison which influences their adaption to the prison
environment. In the prison system, depending on the type of crime
you have committed, you are unintentionally placed into
subcultures. Interpersonal violence in prisons is not a product of
the institution but the characteristics of individuals who enter
such intuitions. Values and attitudes of the criminals segregate
them into their categories. Evidence: Irwin and Cressey The
criminal subculture Follow the norms of a thief e.g- no betrayal
and being trustworthy The convict subculture Been raised in the
prison system and seek status (most aggressive) The straight
subculture One-time offenders, share values with the officers and
guards Evaluating studies: Not everyone fits into these 3
categories and may create their own subculture. Evaluating theory:
IDAs Deterministic In assuming we all decide to join a subculture
when sometimes we like to be alone Reductionist Only certain types
of criminals involved, ignores all varieties for why people are in
prison General Real world application high ecological validity
12. Serotonin & dopamine neural aggression Explanation:
Neurotransmitters are chemicals that enable impulses within the
brain to be transmitted from one area to another. Low levels of
serotonin are supposed to be related to higher levels of
aggression. Serotonin is associated with our emotional stimuli, so
if we are happy, we have a high level of serotonin and vice versa,
hence why when we are sad, we can become angry and aggressive. The
treatment of aggressive behaviour uses serotonin drugs to increase
the mood of a patient in order to reduce aggressiveness. Higher
levels of dopamine are also associated with aggressive behaviour.
Dopamine is seen as the pleasure centre. When the levels of
dopamine increase, the pleasure centre works in a faulty way and
change the way we interpret rewards. Though the link between these
is not as well established as that of serotonin, there has been
research into dopamine drugs which have been proven to help reduce
aggressive behaviour. Evidence: Mann et al Drugs which reduced
serotonin increased measures of hostility and aggression in males
Lauine Giving amphetamines (increase dopamine) increases aggression
Evaluating studies: All based on the treatment of drugs as oppose
to a behavioural therapy Evaluating theory: IDAs Reductionist
Heavily based on biological and neurotransmitters which cannot
fully explain aggression Nature vs nurture No nurture considered,
all nature and biology General Limited evidence for dopamine,
serotonin has more links with aggressive behaviour
13. Testosterone & cortisol - hormonal aggression
Explanation: Testosterone is normally associated with males and
levels of aggression. It acts to sensitive neural circuits in the
brain causing changes in levels of aggression. It appears in young
males when they hit puberty and continues in young middle aged men.
Higher levels of testosterone is associated with increased
aggression. Cortisol mediates other hormones e.g- testosterone
because it increases anxiety and the likelihood of social
withdrawal. High levels of cortisol inhibits testosterone therefore
increases aggressive. However, on its own, low levels will increase
aggression. Evidence: Dabbs et al Salivary testosterone levels were
able to differentiate between violent and non-violent crime
Virkuunen Low levels of cortisol in habitual violent offenders
Evaluating studies: All using biological tests which are more valid
Evaluating theory: IDAs Gender bias testosterone levels are mainly
found and tested in men Determinstic As humans we have a choice to
be aggressive Nature vs Nurture Ignores nurture, strongly focused
on biology and hormones General Culture bias it tends too be in the
western culture
14. Jealously Infidelity Evolutionary aggression
15. Jealously - Evolutionary aggression Explanation:
Evolutionary aggression is based on the idea that different
reproductive challenges faced by our ancestors led to sex
differences, including sexual jealously. We have therefore adapted
to several strategies to deter their female partners from
committing adultery. They do not want to loose their mating partner
and use male retention strategies which could lead to aggression.
These range from violence to vigilance but are both fuelled by male
sexual jealously, an adaption evolved to deal with the threat of
parental uncertainty. Evidence: Daly and wilson 58/214 cases of
murder was motivated by sexual jealously. Evaluating studies: On
such a sensitive topic, its hard to gain accurate results as people
dont want to talk about it Evaluating theory: IDAs Reductionist
heavily based on our ancestors, we have developed and do not
resemble that much of an early human or animal General
16. Infidelity - Institutional aggression Explanation: The idea
of cuckoldery is the idea that a male doesnt want to raise a child
that isn't there own so will try to deter other males to ensure
there is no infidelity. In order to pass on their genes, they need
to ensure their partner is loyal and doesnt carry another's child
apart from their own. Strategies such as direct guarding are put in
place to ensure the female does not cheat. Some examples of the
direct guarding could be checking their partners facebook messages,
their phone or locking them in a room and not letting them see
their friends. This could explain domestic violence in couples and
why men get so paranoid over women. These strategies are put in
place to prevent these problems. Evidence: Miller 55% of battered
wives claimed jealously as a reason for their husbands behaviour
often based on suspicion and fear. Evaluating studies: No
scientific measure, it shows a correlation not cause of being
aggressive and violent behaviour. Evaluating theory: IDAs Nature vs
nurture Can explain both; Nurture- our environment makes us think
only to ensure reproduction of our genes whereas nature is
suggesting it is the evolutionary theory of genes and how we have
developed since that makes us behave this way General Cannot
explain individual differences and why some men are less aggressive
than others
18. Twin studies genetics Explanation: Monozygotic twins share
100% of the same genes whereas dizygotic twins share 50% of the
same genes. It should therefore be a high concordance rates between
monozygotic twins. This is because, if the twins have all the same
genes, then they should both equally be as likely as the other to
have the same levels of aggression. This would prove that it is due
to genes and no alternative factors that aggression is genetic.
Evidence: Rutter Dizygotic twins had a concordance rate between
13-22% Monozygotic twins had a concordance rate between 26-31%
Evaluating studies: The results of the study show that with such
low figures, its unlikely that aggression is genetic. Evaluating
theory: IDAs Nature vs nurture-Theory is built upon the idea of
nature and that genetics makes us aggressive when rutters study
identified that it was no-where near all genetics so a nurture
aspect must be true General Though there are figures to prove that
genetics may be a good explanation, the numbers are so low that
alternative factors must also be influencing aggression levels
Individual differences Though the monozygotic twins are
biologically the same, their personalities may be different and it
might just be that one twin is a bit more feisty than the
other
19. Adoption studies - Genetics Explanation: Adoption studies
untangle the contribution of the environment and genetic
aggression. If there is a positive correlation found between
aggressive behaviour in adopted children and their biological
parents then the genetic explanation is strong. However if a
correlation is found between adopted child's aggression and the new
family, then it shows that the environment plays the biggest role.
Evidence: Hutchings et al Studied criminal records of all Danish
children outside their biological family between 1924-1947 It was
found that having a criminal biological father increases
criminality chances in the child There is a higher chance is both
the biological and adoptive father is criminal Evaluating studies:
Low demographics only used Danish participants Out-dated study
Evaluating theory: IDAs Nature vs Nurture both are considered
Nature and genes play a role but so does the adoptive father
(environment) General Fails to acknowledge the difference between
violent and non-violent crime meaning its harder to label those
that are truly aggressive, not just committing any crime
20. MAOA gene - Genetics Explanation: The MAOA gene regulates
the metabolism of serotonin in the brain. Low levels of serotonin
are associated with aggressive feelings. Having too little of this
gene leads to the brain being flooded with so much serotonin
leading to lowered sensitivity to those neurotransmitters. This
means that anyone with too little of the MAOA gene is at risk of
being criminal for violent crime. Evidence: Moffat et al Conducted
a longditutional study of 422 males in New Zealand Their criminal
convictions were studied His findings found that there was a link
between the MAOA gene and violent crime Evaluating studies:
Longditutional studies suffer from attrition Androcentric only used
males Evaluating theory: IDAs Gender bias males tend to be more
aggressive than females so a lot of research is done into males
aggression but little is known about female aggression General
There are other factors which contribute to aggressive behaviour
gene- environment interaction
21. Sports Warfare Group Display
22. Sports Group display Explanation: In some team sports,
aggression is linked with victory as displaying aggression
threatens/intimidates the other team putting them off leaving more
chance of your team to win. According to the evolutionary theory,
higher status brings increased opportunities for survival. Applying
this to sports, a successful sport team will be rewarded with
resources e.g- money bonuses which makes them more attractive as a
mate. A team are more likely to win at their home ground/territory.
Victory brings status to fans. Fans provide exposure, fame and more
money, these are opportunities for better mates and leads to
increased survival. Xenophobia is a fear of strangers. Evidence:
Maxwell & Viscek Questioned 144 rugby union players about
aggression in their games. Those high in professions placed more
emphasis on winning and therefore used more aggression Evaluating
studies: One sport was examined, some sports are not as competitive
Evaluating theory: IDAs Reductionist Fails to consider the role of
biology and cognitive factors General Deindivduation can further
explain aggression in bigger crowds/sports teams as there is an
increase in anonymity Sporting group displays e.g- the haka, are
more for commercial reasons than traditional practises
23. Warfare Group Display Explanation: It is difficult to see
why organisms such as humans who were selected to survive would
engage in something like war at such personal costs. The
evolutionary suggestion may suggest that males act like this
because of their usefulness in battles. If a male performs well in
these battles and acts brave, they are rewarded as they win the
female, status and reproductive fitness. Evidence: Changnon
Yanomamo tribe in the Amazon rainforest There were frequent battles
over women The success in battle lead to a higher status and had
more wives and children Young men who didnt kill were rarely
married Evaluating studies: One tribe that has different norms to
western society doesnt explain aggression in our culture Evaluating
theory: IDAs Gender bias- Heavily focused on the alpha male role on
men and doesnt explain womens aggression General War only occurred
when we shifted from nomadic living to one site. Therefore, whens
there conflict, we can no longer run away so have to use war to
deal with the problems. This showing aggressive displays are not
biological, just an environmental change.