Aggression

• Frustration-aggression hypothesis


  Aggression is the result of frustration. Frustration leads to the arousal of an aggressive drive, which leads to aggressive behaviour, consequently relieving the aggressive urges (catharsis).
• Frustration increases when our motivation to achieve a goal is strong, when we expect gratification, and when there is nothing we can do about it
• Justified frustration


  e.g. a bus showing an 'out of service' sign not stopping at a bus stop
• Unjustified frustration


  e.g. a bus not stopping at a bus stop
• Displaced aggression


  When it is inappropriate to behave aggressively towards the source of frustration, aggressiveness towards it is inhibited but may be displaced onto someone or something else
• Revised frustration-aggression hypothesis


  Frustration is only one of many different types of unpleasant experience that can lead to aggression. These experiences create negative feelings in the individual and it is these, rather than the frustration, that triggers aggressive behaviour.
• Anything that interferes with our ability to reach an anticipated goal is experienced as an unpleasant experience, which may produce anger. The nature of the frustrating event is less important than how negative the resulting effect is
• Aggression is not an automatic consequence of frustration
• Who created the Frustration aggression hypothesis

  Dollard et al (1939)
• What did Brown (2001) find?

  An increase in hostile attitudes towards the French, as a result of passenger’s frustration when their ferry was blocked by French, protesting fishermen