Aggression People have many behavioral characteristics that combine to create unique individuals. A behavioral characteristic that exist in all people is aggression. In some aggression is a problem and is harder to control than in others. Aggression is classified as any action carried out with the intention of harming another person (Coon, and Millerer 579). There are several factors that can contribute to aggression in people such as the environment they are in and some physical factors. Despite what many people believe aggression is not biological (Coon, and Millerer 580). It is a characteristic that people are able to portray, but it does not mean that a person must act aggressively. People may develop a higher aggressive tendency …show more content…
While all these do have a major impact on why people are aggressive none of these alone can be blamed for the reasons why people are aggressive, physical factors may also play a role. Researchers have found strong relationships with people who have certain allergy, hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), specific brain injury, disease, and high levels of testosterone with aggression (Coon, and Millerer 580). A physical factor that has a high frequency in aggressive behavior is high levels of testosterone. Studies have shown that males are generally more aggressive than females, due to their higher levels of testosterone (Relationships). Testosterone is a hormone that is produced by the pituitary gland. The pituitary gland influences the endocrine system (Ballington, and Laughlin 414). Since testosterone is what enhances male development and estrogen is what enhances female development, it gives reasonable evidence as to why men are more aggressive. Although if a person is under the influence of alcohol or drugs; the levels of testosterone in a person does not matter. Alcohol and drugs alter the state of mind which opens the window to aggressive behavior. Almost all reported high aggressive acts of violence and crime are committed while the person was under the influence of either alcohol or drugs (Coon, and Millerer 580).
While alcohol and drugs
Research has identified different types of aggression to include instrumental, reactive, relational, bullying aggression (Berger, 2008; Merrell, Buchanan, & Tran, 2006; Cappella & Weinstein, 2006) and social aggression [ (Merrell, Buchanan, & Tran, 2006; Cappella & Weinstein, 2006) ].
Aggressions can be broadly divided in to two types: Reactive/ Impulsive aggression (RA) refers to aggression that is impulsive, emotionally charged, affective and uncontrolled. It has its theoretical roots in the frustration-tolerance theory. It is most often observed in response to a perceived threatening stimulus and is frequently accompanied by negative affect, facial expressions described as hostile, temper tantrums,
Testosterone is a hormone that is more concentrated in men than in women as it is a male sex hormone, it is thought to influence aggression from a young age onwards, due to its actions on the brain areas involved in controlling aggression. One research study that was done on testosterone involved measuring the testosterone found in the saliva of violent and non-violent criminals. This study was concluded by Dabbs et al
According to Berkowitz (1993) aggression refers to goal-directed motor behavior that has a deliberate intent to harm or
Aggression is a natural part of human behavior, and can even be adaptive in certain situations. However, when aggression manifests itself in violent behaviors, it becomes problematic. Patterns of aggression change throughout childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood, and these changes usually differ between males and females (Loeber, 1997). Physical aggression is typically greatest early in life and decreases during adolescence, whereas more serious violence tends to increase with age, particularly during adolescence (Loeber, 1997). Despite the changes that occur in aggressive tendencies throughout childhood and adolescence, aggression is seen as a very stable trait, almost as stable as
Aggression is defined as behaviour directed towards another living being with the intent of harming or injuring them in someway, and can be defined as either
Children tend to act more violently due over exposure to violent media. Interestingly, studies done by psychologists L. Rowell Huesmann, Leonard Eron and others show that being aggressive as a youth did not speculate that they would watch more television. This suggests that violent media portrayal is a cause rather than a consequence of aggressive people. However, later research by psychologists Douglas Gentile and Brad Bushman, suggested that media violence is just one of the many causes that inhibit rational thought. [http://www.apa.org/research/action/protect.aspx]
In some cases this cases this may be true. Substance abuse can, in fact, encourage aggressive behavior in certain people but not in all. In the same way, head trauma can encourage more aggressive behavior in certain people, but not all. There is no fool proof scientific method of diagnosing who will be an extreme aggressor and why, however, what has proven to be true is more often than not a person with a traumatic brain injury has a tendency to be more aggressive than one
Based on the theories of self-identity, aggression plays a major role where individuals seek to establish their identity. In order for individuals to identify themselves they sometimes require a form of opposition that can be manifested through aggression. In general, most of our activities as human beings are a mixture of negative and positive forms of aggression
This is not to deny, however, that there is a relationship between aggression and biological influences. Complex neural systems in the brain when stimulated electrically or chemically can promote aggressive behaviors. Similar effects are noted with certain types of head injuries. Head injury victims may react with rage distinct from ordinary anger (Rosenbaum, Hoge, Adelman, Warnken, Fletcher, & Kane, 1994). Their rage may
Physical assault and aggression is the second leading cause of death among 14 to 17 year olds, next to vehicular accidents (Loeber). But why are humans so aggressive in the first place? There are two sides of the debate: Nature, and Nurture. Some say that it’s human nature, genetics that cause most behaviors, while others say that we act as we learned during childhood. This argument applies to aggression as well. Aggression is mainly caused by things during childhood and adolescence where people learn from various sources about aggression, although, human psychology plays a slight factor.
There are clearly no simple genetic or hormonal factors that can explain the variation in aggressive in males and females. Studies of human males suggest that there is at most a small genetic component to aggression, but a greater one for personality traits associated with such behavior. The biological mechanisms translating the message in the genes into antisocial or criminal behavior are not known. Therefore, there is clearly no simple aggressive gene effect. Many genes are likely to be involved, and each may have a weak effect on aggressive behavior. A direct genetic effect on aggression, for example, may determine how quickly an individual responds to aggravation. Aggression may also be influenced indirectly; for example, a man's size and strength may affect the way he behaves and how others react to him. (Turner, 253)
Because males tend to value influential goals such as status among peers, they will typically use overt forms of aggression and gradually incorporate relational forms (Grotpeter & Crick, 1996). The choice of aggression could be linked to the social roles of males and females, the verbal maturity, or the social dynamics in peer relationships.
In the year 2000 there are many problems with society. One of the biggest and most controllable is the issue of violence. Although we are subjected to violence everyday by simply turning on the news, other forms of violence for entertainment can be censored.
Both glands produce two distinct hormones, but produce differing amounts of each hormone. Masculine hormones such as androgens and testosterone are predominately produced by male testes. These hormones at high levels can be related to aggressive behavior regardless of sex, but high levels are most commonly found in males. High levels of feminine hormones or estrogen, most commonly found in females, have recently been linked to aggressive behavior as well. While high levels of estrogen in females and high levels of testosterone in males have been linked to aggressive behavior, normal levels of these hormones have been known to cause aggression as well. Although these hormones have been related to human behavior, scientists have concluded that these hormones alone do not dictate behavior (Morris & Maisto, 2005).