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Journal of Interpersonal Violence Jul 2022Evidence is mixed regarding differences in prevalence of aggressive behavior, with many (though not all) studies suggesting that men are more aggressive than women....
Evidence is mixed regarding differences in prevalence of aggressive behavior, with many (though not all) studies suggesting that men are more aggressive than women. Furthermore, while aggression often occurs in response to provocation-induced anger, this relationship may be stronger for men; women may be more likely to engage in non-aggressive (e.g., affiliative) behaviors in response to provocation, particularly at low-level provocation. This study examined gender differences in aggression as well as differences in the relationship between anger and aggression for men and women. Adults ( = 424) participated in a behavioral aggression task, and a subset of participants ( = 304) completed a questionnaire assessing trait levels of anger as part of a larger study at a large midwestern university. Results indicated that while men and women aggressed at similar levels, aggression was significantly associated with trait anger for men only, at low levels of provocation, with only a trending relationship for high provocation. This suggests that while men and women may be equally aggressive in certain situations, this behavior may be differentially associated with anger.
Topics: Adult; Aggression; Anger; Female; Humans; Male; Sex Factors; Universities
PubMed: 33546562
DOI: 10.1177/0886260521991870 -
Journal of Clinical Child and... 2024Research on the role of affect in childhood aggression motives has largely focused on domain-level affective traits. Lower-order affective facets may show more distinct...
OBJECTIVE
Research on the role of affect in childhood aggression motives has largely focused on domain-level affective traits. Lower-order affective facets may show more distinct relationships with instrumental and reactive aggression - at both the variable and individual levels - and offer unique insights into whether and how several forms of affect are involved in aggression motives.
METHOD
Caregivers (98% mothers) of 342 children ( = 9.81 years, 182 girls, 31% White) reported on children's aggression and affect-relevant personality traits, personality pathology, and callous-unemotional traits.
RESULTS
Both reactive and instrumental aggressions were characterized by higher levels of trait irritability, fear, withdrawal, sadness, and callous-unemotional traits in zero-order analyses. Instrumental aggression was characterized by low trait positive emotions. Reactive aggression was uniquely associated with irritability, fear, withdrawal, and sadness, whereas instrumental aggression was uniquely associated with callous-unemotional traits and (low) positive emotions. Groups identified by latent profile analyses were differentiated only by aggression severity.
CONCLUSIONS
The findings support both the similarity and distinction of reactive and instrumental aggression vis-à-vis their affective phenomenology. Consistent with existing theories, reactive aggression was linked to multiple forms of negative emotionality, whereas instrumental aggression was linked to higher levels of callous-unemotional traits. In a novel finding, instrumental aggression was uniquely characterized by lower positive emotions. The findings highlight the utility of pre-registered approaches employing comprehensive personality-based affective frameworks to organize and understand similarities and differences between aggression functions.
Topics: Humans; Aggression; Female; Male; Child; Personality; Affect; Emotions; Child Behavior
PubMed: 38039086
DOI: 10.1080/15374416.2023.2272951 -
American Journal of Medical Genetics.... Jul 2016Aggressive behavior has both genetic and environmental components. Many association studies have been performed to identify genetic factors underlying aggressive... (Review)
Review
Aggressive behavior has both genetic and environmental components. Many association studies have been performed to identify genetic factors underlying aggressive behaviors in humans. In this review we summarize the previous work performed in this field, considering both candidate gene (CGAS) and genome-wide association studies (GWAS), excluding those performed in samples where the primary diagnosis is a psychiatric or neurological disorder other than an aggression-related phenotype. Subsequently, we have studied the enrichment of pathways and functions in GWAS data. The results of our searches show that most CGAS have identified associations with genes involved in dopaminergic and serotonergic neurotransmission and in hormone regulation. On the other hand, GWAS have not yet identified genome-wide significant associations, but top nominal findings are related to several signaling pathways, such as axon guidance or estrogen receptor signaling, and also to neurodevelopmental processes and synaptic plasticity. Future studies should use larger samples, homogeneous phenotypes and standardized measurements to identify genes that underlie aggressive behaviors in humans. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Topics: Aggression; Genetic Association Studies; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Genome-Wide Association Study; Humans; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Social Behavior
PubMed: 26773414
DOI: 10.1002/ajmg.b.32419 -
Aggressive Behavior Mar 2020Metacognitive model is a theoretical approach aimed to explain emotion dysregulation and others emotion-related issues, such anger, and aggressive behavior. From this...
Metacognitive model is a theoretical approach aimed to explain emotion dysregulation and others emotion-related issues, such anger, and aggressive behavior. From this model, people having higher maladaptive metacognitive beliefs (e.g., "I can't control my thoughts") are more likely to activate and maintain anger rumination and, in turn, to experience higher levels of anger and to act aggressively. Preliminary evidence shows the role of metacognitive beliefs on anger rumination and anger levels, whereas no studies have examined its association with aggressive behavior. This study first examined the associations between metacognitive beliefs, anger rumination, anger levels, and the propensity to engage in displaced aggression, and second, the mediation role of anger rumination in the relations among metacognitive beliefs and anger and displaced aggression. Participants were 947 students and non-students from general population recruited in two different countries (Australia and Spain). Correlational analyses revealed a similar pattern of results in the Australian and Spanish sample, with participants having dysfunctional metacognitive beliefs also showing higher anger rumination, higher levels of anger and a higher tendency to act aggressively. Structural equation analyses revealed the associations of metacognitive beliefs with anger levels and displaced aggression was fully mediated by anger rumination in both samples. These results suggest that metacognitive beliefs should be considered in comprehensive models and in the therapy of anger problems and aggression.
Topics: Aggression; Anger; Australia; Humans; Individuality; Metacognition; Spain; Thinking
PubMed: 31957050
DOI: 10.1002/ab.21878 -
Aggressive Behavior Jan 2024The present study aimed to observe the relationships between superhero media exposure, aggression, and prosocialness in adults. We also investigated gender's moderating...
The present study aimed to observe the relationships between superhero media exposure, aggression, and prosocialness in adults. We also investigated gender's moderating role. A total of 700 Brazilians participated in the study (age mean = 25.77, SD = 8.63, SE = 0.32, 57% men). Results showed a positive relation between superhero media exposure, prosocialness (r = .18), and all aggression factors (physical: r = .13; verbal: r = .08; aggressive emotions: r = .16). Aggressive emotions mediated indirect effects of exposure (physical aggression: λ = 0.12, p < .01, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.05-0.21; verbal aggression: λ = 0.10, p < .01, 95% CI = 0.05-0.18). Finally, gender moderated the relationship between exposure and prosocialness (b = 0.13, t = 2.07, p = .03).
Topics: Adult; Female; Humans; Male; Aggression; Emotions; South American People; Young Adult; Adolescent; Media Exposure
PubMed: 37632833
DOI: 10.1002/ab.22109 -
Journal of Interpersonal Violence Oct 2022This study investigated adolescents' understanding of cyber dating aggression in terms of frequency and aggressiveness: how prevalent they perceived cyber dating...
This study investigated adolescents' understanding of cyber dating aggression in terms of frequency and aggressiveness: how prevalent they perceived cyber dating aggression among adolescents and how aggressive they perceived such behaviors to be. To do so, different WhatsApp scenarios were presented to adolescents, controlling for the typology of cyber dating aggression (verbal/emotional, controlling, or sexual) and its publicity (public or private cyber dating aggression). The moderating effect of gender and moral disengagement (MD) was also analyzed. A total of 262 adolescents (56.5% girls; mean age of 14.46 years) participated in the study and answered a computer-based questionnaire. General linear models revealed that adolescents consider cyber dating aggression to be present in most adolescent romantic relationships. Controlling online behavior was perceived as the most frequent and the least aggressive behavior. Adolescents rated private cyber aggression as more frequent and less aggressive than public cyber aggressions. Controlling for gender, girls reported that cyber dating aggression was more common and more severe than boys. Moreover, participants with high levels of MD perceived cyber dating aggressions to be less aggressive than participants with medium-low MD. This study reveals the significance of the type of cyber dating aggression, the public/private dimension, gender, and MD as variables that influence adolescent understanding of cyber dating aggression. These results have implications not only for the design of cyber dating aggression prevention programs but also for future research on cyber dating aggression.
Topics: Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior; Aggression; Female; Humans; Male; Perception; Sexual Behavior; Surveys and Questionnaires
PubMed: 34215162
DOI: 10.1177/08862605211028011 -
The Journal of Adolescent Health :... Nov 2014Bullying involvement in any form can have lasting physical and emotional consequences for adolescents. For programs and policies to best safeguard youth, it is important... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Bullying involvement in any form can have lasting physical and emotional consequences for adolescents. For programs and policies to best safeguard youth, it is important to understand prevalence of bullying across cyber and traditional contexts. We conducted a thorough review of the literature and identified 80 studies that reported corresponding prevalence rates for cyber and traditional bullying and/or aggression in adolescents. Weighted mean effect sizes were calculated, and measurement features were entered as moderators to explain variation in prevalence rates and in traditional-cyber correlations within the sample of studies. Prevalence rates for cyber bullying were lower than for traditional bullying, and cyber and traditional bullying were highly correlated. A number of measurement features moderated variability in bullying prevalence; whereas a focus on traditional relational aggression increased correlations between cyber and traditional aggressions. In our meta-analytic review, traditional bullying was twice as common as cyber bullying. Cyber and traditional bullying were also highly correlated, suggesting that polyaggression involvement should be a primary target for interventions and policy. Results of moderation analyses highlight the need for greater consensus in measurement approaches for both cyber and traditional bullying.
Topics: Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior; Aggression; Bullying; Crime Victims; Female; Humans; Internal-External Control; Internet; Interpersonal Relations; Male; Peer Group; Prevalence; Self Concept; Students
PubMed: 25168105
DOI: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2014.06.007 -
Journal of Psychiatric Research Nov 2022A Lifetime History of Experienced Aggression and a Lifetime History of Witnessed Aggression assessment was developed and its psychometric properties examined in a modest...
A Lifetime History of Experienced Aggression and a Lifetime History of Witnessed Aggression assessment was developed and its psychometric properties examined in a modest sample of individuals with and without history of psychopathology. Following this, the two assessments were administered to 400 subjects with or without histories of major psychiatric and personality disorders. These studies demonstrated good to excellent psychometric properties as well as evidence of convergent and divergent validity. Since both assessments quantify the occurrence of aggressive behaviors directed at a person and the occurrence of aggressive behaviors witnessed, the researchers propose that these assessments represents a needed modular assessment of aggression in the environment for behavioral science research.
Topics: Aggression; Humans; Personality Disorders; Psychometrics
PubMed: 36191520
DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.09.018 -
Aggressive Behavior May 2022This study investigated early adolescents' (ages 9-14; M = 11.91) self-reported, evolutionarily relevant motives for using aggression, including competitive,...
This study investigated early adolescents' (ages 9-14; M = 11.91) self-reported, evolutionarily relevant motives for using aggression, including competitive, impression management, sadistic, and reactive functions, and examined differential relations with a range of psychosocial characteristics. As expected, competitive functions were associated with aggression and victimization in which the perpetrator had equal or less power than the victim, in line with the view that these are aversive and appetitive motives related to competition with rivals. Impression management and sadistic functions were associated with bullying and coercive resource control strategies (the latter for boys only), consistent with expectations that these are appetitive motives, with the former being more goal-directed and the latter somewhat more impulsive. Finally, as hypothesized, reactive functions were associated with emotional symptoms, hostility, victimization by bullying, and aggression by perpetrators with equal or less power than the victim, consistent with theory and research conceptualizing reactive aggression as an impulsive, emotion-driven response to provocation. The benefits of studying a wide range of evolutionarily relevant aggressive functions are discussed.
Topics: Adolescent; Aggression; Bullying; Child; Crime Victims; Hostility; Humans; Male; Motivation
PubMed: 35088903
DOI: 10.1002/ab.22020 -
Biological Psychiatry Aug 2017Some people are highly motivated to seek aggressive encounters, and among those who have been incarcerated for such behavior, recidivism rates are high. These...
BACKGROUND
Some people are highly motivated to seek aggressive encounters, and among those who have been incarcerated for such behavior, recidivism rates are high. These observations echo two core features of drug addiction: high motivation to seek addictive substances, despite adverse consequences, and high relapse rates. Here we used established rodent models of drug addiction to determine whether they would be sensitive to "addiction-like" features of aggression in CD-1 mice.
METHODS
In experiments 1 and 2, we trained older CD-1 mice to lever press for opportunities to attack younger C57BL6/J mice. We then tested them for relapse to aggression seeking after forced abstinence or punishment-induced suppression of aggression self-administration. In experiment 3, we trained a large cohort of CD-1 mice and tested them for choice-based voluntary suppression of aggression seeking, relapse to aggression seeking, progressive ratio responding, and punishment-induced suppression of aggression self-administration. We then used cluster analysis to identify patterns of individual differences in compulsive "addiction-like" aggressive behavior.
RESULTS
In experiments 1 and 2, we observed strong motivation to acquire operant self-administration of opportunities to aggress and relapse vulnerability during abstinence. In experiment 3, cluster analysis of the aggression-related measures identified a subset of "addicted" mice (∼19%) that exhibited intense operant-reinforced attack behavior, decreased likelihood to select an alternative reinforcer over aggression, heightened relapse vulnerability and progressive ratio responding, and resilience to punishment-induced suppression of aggressive behavior.
CONCLUSIONS
Using procedures established to model drug addiction, we showed that a subpopulation of CD-1 mice demonstrate "addiction-like" aggressive behavior, suggesting an evolutionary origin for compulsive aggression.
Topics: Aggression; Animals; Behavior, Addictive; Choice Behavior; Cohort Studies; Compulsive Behavior; Conditioning, Operant; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Reinforcement, Psychology; Self Administration
PubMed: 28434654
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2017.03.004