Aggression
Instrumental aggression - aggressive acts intended to achieve some desired goal
Hostile aggression - aggressive acts intended to harm someone
- early aggression is mainly instrumental
- hostile aggression in 3-year-olds is predictive of levels of aggression in adolescence
- hostile aggression gradually increases in frequency after age 4
- aggressive acts are less indiscriminate
Relational (Indirect/Verbal) aggression - aggressive behavior that takes the form of social rejection, manipulation and/or insults
- more common in girls
Reactive aggression - angry retaliation for some intentional or accidental act by another
Bullying aggression - unprovoked physical or verbal attacks on another person
Who are the Victims?
Passive victims - withdrawn and submissive
- non-assertive
- reward attackers with signs of distress
- acquiesce to aggressors' demands
- refrain from retaliation
Aggressive victims - overreactive
- poorly controlled emotional states
- externalizing behaviors
Ladd & Ladd ( 1998) - Peer victimization in kindergarten
- 103 boys, 94 girls
- diverse socioeconomic (SE) backgrounds
- from 3 school systems
- children & caregivers filmed in 5 interactions
e.g., discussing a fun experience, parent telling a baby story
- each interaction about 5 minutes
- rated for intrusiveness: negating, changing, interrupting
demandingness: orders
responsivity: contingent?
Ratings of victimization - self-report
Aggression with peers - teachers' reports
Results:
Parental intrusive demandingness
- associated with peer victimization in boys and girls
Speculations:
- little opportunity to control or influence social interaction
- fosters passive orientation
- restricted autonomy
Intense closeness (overprotectiveness?)
- associated with peer victimization in boys
Speculations:
- encourages passive - dependent behaviors?
- less likely to learn confrontational skills
Responsiveness
- associated with lower peer victimization
Speculations:
- experience control & mastery of social events
- develop secure emotional states
Note: - all three measures accounted for unique variance, i.e., they contributed separately to victimization
- are they "causes" of victimization?
OR
- are they differential parent responses to risky child behaviors or temperaments?
Altruism
- selfless concern for the welfare of others
- leading to prosocial behavior: actions such as sharing, cooperating, helping or sympathizing that benefit others
Eisenberg's Levels of Prosocial Moral Reasoning
Hedonistic - Preschool, early elementary
- one's own needs
Needs oriented - Elementary
- help but little sympathy
Approval oriented - Elementary, some high school
- stereotyped images of good and bad
Empathetic - Older elementary, high school
- sympathetic feelings
Internalized values - Some high school
- justification based on internalized norms
Encouraging Empathetic Reactions
(Schulman and Mekler, 1986)
1. Foster perspective-taking and empathy.
2. Model empathy and communicate that empathy is valued.
3. Expect empathic behavior, reinforce it, and explain how.
4. Help children deal with other people.
5. Explain positive consequences of empathy.
WWII Rescuers of Jews
Parents stressed:
- generosity and helpfulness to all
- all humans have a right to life
Reasons given for helping:
- sympathy and caring or compassion
SOCIAL REVERSAL OF SEXBIASED AGGRESSION AND DOMINANCE IN A
CHALLENGING BEHAVIOUR VIOLENCE AND AGGRESSION CARETAKERS SOUTHWEST LTD SCOPE
CHANGES IN AND CORRELATES OF THE TYPES OF AGGRESSION
Tags: aggression instrumental, self-report aggression, aggression, instrumental, achieve, intended, aggressive