Introduction
Antisocial behaviour is any behaviour that is disruptive or harmful to the wellbeing or property of another person or to the functioning of a group or society. Antisocial behaviour typically involves actions that break the laws, rules or social norms concerning personal and property rights of others. At the core of many antisocial acts is aggression.
Aggression (as defined in psychology) is any behaviour intended to cause physical or psychological harm to a person (including self), animal or object. The action might be physical, verbal or a combination of both. It may also involve subtle actions, such as ignoring or leaving someone out. For a behaviour to be considered aggressive there must be an intention to harm, regardless of whether or not harm is actually done. Thus, if an angry classmate throws a book at you and you move away so it misses you, it is still an aggressive act. However, if a cricketer accidentally hits you with a cricket ball while you are walking across a sports oval, it is not considered to be an aggressive act, even though you may suffer more harm from being hit by the cricket ball than from avoiding the book. If the harmful behaviour is intentional, then it can be described as aggressive; if it was not intentional, but the outcome caused considerable harm to the recipient, the behaviour may be described as reckless, but not aggressive.
Factors Influencing Aggression: There is no single, commonly agreed upon explanation of why people may engage in aggressive behaviour. Many theories have been proposed to explain aggression, but not all of these are strongly supported by scientific research evidence. We examine four theories based to varying degrees on scientific research findings - that aggression has a biological basis and is, at least partly, in born; that aggression has a social basis and occurs as a response to frustration; that factors in the environment can trigger aggressive behaviour, and that aggression is a learned behaviour.
Task
Your task for today is to individually work your way through the following activities which focus on the topic of aggression. Type your answers out on a Word document and email your responses to Miss Tilley (patrese.tilley@henleyhs.sa.edu.au) by the end of the lesson.
Process
Part 1.
As stated in the introduction, aggression (as defined in psychology) is any behaviour intended to cause physical or psychological harm to a person (including self), animal or object. The action might be physical, verbal or a combination of both. It may also involve subtle actions, such as ignoring or leaving someone out. For a behaviour to be considered aggressive there must be an intention to harm, regardless of whether or not harm is actually done. Thus, if an angry classmate throws a book at you and you move away so it misses you, it is still an aggressive act. However, if a cricketer accidentally hits you with a cricket ball while you are walking across a sports oval, it is not considered to be an aggressive act, even though you may suffer more harm from being hit by the cricket ball than from avoiding the book. If the harmful behaviour is intentional, then it can be described as aggressive; if it was not intentional, but the outcome caused considerable harm to the recipient, the behaviour may be described as reckless, but not aggressive.
Using the psychological definition of aggression, identify which of the following behaviours could be considered to be aggressive. Give a reason for each answer.
- accidently injuring someone in a basketball game
- punching your brother in rage
- backchatting your teacher
- insulting a friend
- Tooting the horn at a car that swerved in front of you
- Telling a friend a joke that they find offensive
- Slapping a computer monitor in frustration
- A learner driver presses the accelerator instead of the brake and collides with a cyclist
- Starnng a rumour about someone's family
- Shooting to kill but missing
Part 2.
Factors Influencing Aggression: There is no single, commonly agreed upon explanation of why people may engage in aggressive behaviour. Many theories have been proposed to explain aggression, but not all of these are strongly supported by scientific research evidence. We examine four theories based to varying degrees on scientific research findings - that aggression has a biological basis and is, at least partly, in born; that aggression has a social basis and occurs as a response to frustration; that factors in the environment can trigger aggressive behaviour, and that aggression is a learned behaviour.
Copy and paste the following table into your Word document. Using pages 138-152 in the textbook (ch. 4) fill in the blanks. Use the provided answers as a guide for what is expected for each section.
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Factor Influencing Aggression |
Biological Basis of Aggression |
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Environmental Influences on Aggression |
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Explanation |
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There is considerable evidence that a wide range of social factors influence aggression. These include aggressive responses that sometimes arise from both negative social interactions and from being part of a large group |
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Specific Elements |
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Other information |
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There is considerable evidence that a wide range of social factors influence aggression. These include aggressive responses that sometimes arise from both negative social interactions and from being part of a large group