Aggression

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Aggression
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What is Aggression?

• Physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt
  someone.
  
• Instrumental Aggression (Silent)
• Aggression that is a means to an end (part of a
  plan)
  
• Hostile Aggression (Social)
• Aggression driven by anger, intent to injure
  
  
  

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Theories of Aggression

• 1) Aggression as being innate
• 2) Aggression as a response to frustration
• 3) Cognitive Perspectives
• 4) Aggression as being learned

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Aggression as Innate

• Freud (1920) death urge
• Moyer (1976) Women- Electrical stimulation in
  the Amygdala became aggressive.
  

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Aggression as being Genetic

• Rushton (1986)
• Investigated 500 pairs of MZ and DZ twins self
  reported temper.
  
• Significantly higher correlations were found
  among MZ twins relative to DZ twins.
  
• Lagerspetz (1979) Bred mice over 26 generations
  to be either fierce or placid.
  
• Some species are bred for aggressiveness (dogs,
  fighting birds)
  

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Buss Shackelford (1997)

• Aggression can be an evolutionarily adaptive
  strategy
  
• Help procure resources
• defense
• Secure mates
• Punish or deter infidelity

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Frustration Aggression Hypothesis

• Dollard et al (1939)
• Frustration grows when
• our motivation to achieve is strong
• When we expect gratification
• When our goal is completely blocked
• Frustration aggression
• unless - inhibited by fear, revulsion, or
  another non-aggressive motive
  

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Burnstein Worchel (1962)

• In a group task situation.
• Person frequently asks what, huh. And slows
  progress.
  
• I.V. hearing aid or not.
• D.V. shock duration in a later experiment.
• Results?

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Some qualifications to the FAH

• Dollard et al.- we aggress against those
  perceived to be the source of displeasure.
  
• Displacement can occur (if similar to frustrating
  person)
  
• Hovland and Sears (1940)- lynching before 1930.
• Berkowitz and Frodi (1979)
• Funny looking boy and shock

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Revised Frustration Aggression Model

• Berkowitz
• Frustration doesnt always lead to aggression
• FA only if accompanied by unpleasant feelings
  (anger)
  
• Instrumental aggression not from frustration
• People are more frustrated when they believe
  there was wrongful intent.
  

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Modifications

• Unpleasant feelings induced from frustration
  ultimately lead to aggression
  
• Unpleasant feelings lead to flight or fight
  response.
  
• Which one depends on priming or learning
• Cognitive reaction are second to emotions.

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• Anything can elicit aggression if it elicits
  negative affect.
  
• What sorts of stimuli?
• Interpersonally
• physical attack
• intent to harm
• verbal insult
• frustration

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• Other
• Pain
• Berkowitz et al (1981)
• Learning experiment, P the teacher.
• I.V. had Ps hold their non-dominant hand in
  cold/warm water
  
• D.V. the frequency of noise bursts for
  punishment
  
• Results?

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• Other
• Priming
• Berkowitz and LaPage (1967)
• P tormented by confederate
• I.V. realistic toy gun on table OR a badminton
  racket
  
• D.V. Number of shocks.
• Results.

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Cognitive Perspectives

• Zillman et al (1972)
• Excitation transfer.
• Arousal does not immediately dissipate and can be
  misattributed to other sources.
  
• First provoked by a person.
• I.V. rigorous exercise/or sedentary
• Next given a chance to retaliate.
• D.V. Punishment
• Results.

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Zillman and Cantor (1976)

• Zillman and Cantor (1976)
• I.V. experimenter was rude or pleasant.
• I.V. Ps were made aware of extenuating
  circumstances or not.
  
• D.V. evaluation of experimenter.
• Result?

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Schacter and Singer (1962)

• Gave Ps a shot of adrenaline
• I.V. told of the side effects (flushing, heart
  palpitations, rapid breathing) or not.
  
• I.V. Waited in a room with a confederate who
  acted angry or euphoric.
  
• D.V. Self ratings and observations of anger and
  euphoria.
  
• Results.

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• Emotion can be the result of cognitions.
• This has implications for aggression.

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Aggression as being learned

• Social Learning Theory
• Learn social behavior by observing and imitating
  and by being rewarded and punished.
  

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Bandura, Ross, Ross 1961

• Children watch adults play with tinker toys and
  Bobo doll (5 foot doll)
  
• Condition 1-Play with tinker toys about 2 minutes
  then start beating the doll (mallet, toss, kick,
  yell)
  
• Condition 2-Adult works quietly with tinker toys
  and ignores doll.

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Bandura et al. (1961)

• Children are annoyed and then left alone for 20
  minutes with a 3 ft. Bobo doll.
  
• Children from condition 1 punched, kicked,
  hammered, and shouted at the doll in a similar
  manner to the way the adults did.
  
• Condition 2 Did not show aggressive tendencies
• Watching adults aggress lowered inhibitions
  toward aggression and taught violence.
  

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Media and Aggression

• Leonard Eron- Assuming a child watches 2 to 4
  hours of T.V. a day, they will have witnessed
  more than 8,000 murders and 10,000 other acts of
  violence

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Long-term effects

• Rip Van Winkle Project
• Measured exposure to T.V. violence among 8 year
  olds
  
• Age of 30 - related to self reported aggression
  as well as arrest records
  
• Independent of social class, intelligence, or
  parenting variables (Eron Huesmann, 1984)

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Ways T.V. can influence Aggression

• Arousal tends to spill over
• Imitation
• Habituation/Desensitization

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Music and Aggression

• Johnson et al. (1995)
• African American males expressed greater
  acceptance of violence in general and violence
  against women in particular if they had recently
  been exposed to violent rap videos.
• Hanson (1995)- Similar findings among Whites with
  aggressive rock music videos.

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Habituation/Desensitization

• Adaptation to something familiar. Both
  physiological and psychological reactions are
  reduced.
  
• Molitor Hirsch, 1994-
• I.V. Karate kid vs. Olympics
• Watch 2 kids in another room who get violent
• D.V. reaction to aggression
• Karate Kid group more tolerant of violence and
  slower to seek out help.

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Pornography and Aggression

• Exposing individuals to pornography over time
• Donnerstein Hallam, 1978
• 18 to 36 pornographic films over 6 weeks
• x-rated but non-violent
• Measured physiological response to new,
  unfamiliar pornography
  
• Aggressiveness toward same-sex confederate
• Attitudes

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Results

• 1) A habituation effect- Diminished
  physiological response, less aggression toward
  same sex experimenter.
  
• 2) Rape trial- Recommended lighter sentence for
  rapist
  
• 3) Reported less support for the womens
  liberation movement.
  
• 4) Reported more negative attitudes toward women.

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Violent Pornography

• Combines high arousal, negative emotional
  reactions, and aggressive thoughts
  
• Male to female aggression is significantly
  increased after viewing violent pornography
  
• May be the case that arousal can just be
  transferred to violence when provoked?

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Donnerstein Berkowitz, 1981

• 3 Groups Neutral film, suffering female victim
  film, and sexually aroused female victim (rape
  myth).
  
• 1/2 participants were provoked after seeing the
  violent pornographic video.
  
• D.V. Shocks given to another female student while
  performing task

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Results
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What can we do about it?

• Should pornography be banned?
• Raises a number of philosophical, political and
  practical concerns.
  
• Research has indicated that educating individuals
  about rape myths and that violent pornography is
  unrealistic.
  
• Numerous studies have indicated that such
  education is helpful in reducing acceptance of
  rape myths and increased sympathy for rape
  victims. (Hypocrisy)