Deck 24: The Nature and Nurture of Aggression

Question 1

The study of neural influences on aggression has indicated that

A)one specific region of the brain controls aggression.
B)activating the amygdala can facilitate aggressive outbursts in humans.
C)activating the occipital lobe can cause a tyrant monkey to be more docile.
D)activating the frontal lobe can trigger aggressive behavior.

Answer 1

activating the amygdala can facilitate aggressive outbursts in humans.

Question 2

According to Myers,in 2003 American and British leaders justified attacking Iraq not as a hostile effort to kill Iraqis,but as an instrumental act of liberation and of self-defense against presumed weapons of mass destruction.Social psychologists would consider this an example of _______ aggression.

A)manipulative
B)duplicitous
C)hostile
D)instrumental

Answer 2

instrumental

Question 3

In contrast to Freud's view of aggression,Lorenz argued that aggression is

A)innate.
B)adaptive rather than self-destructive.
C)biologically influenced but not instinctive.
D)socially learned.

Answer 3

adaptive rather than self-destructive.

Question 4

Juanita is upset with Rose so during a social gathering she verbally cuts Rose down in front of others.Juanita's behavior is

A)assertive.
B)manipulative.
C)aggressive.
D)an example of displacement.

Question 5

Instinctive behavior is behavior that is

A)survival-oriented and common to most members of a species.
B)innate,unlearned,and shown by all members of a species.
C)reflexive and automatic but easily overcome by learning.
D)taught to members of a species.

Question 6

found that intoxicated people administered stronger shocks and felt angrier when thinking about

A)their physical shortcomings.
B)their grades in college.
C)relationship conflicts.
D)their families.

Question 7

As Adolescent bullies often seek to demonstrate their dominance and high status making their behaviors and example of _____ aggression.

A)genetically based
B)hostile
C)instrumental
D)silent

Question 8

Which statement regarding aggression is TRUE?

A)Twin studies indicate that aggression is never genetic.
B)New Zealand studies indicate that aggression is caused by abuse.
C)Alcohol enhances aggressiveness.
D)Aggression is caused by brain damage.

Question 9

Studies of hormonal influences on aggression indicate that

A)hormonal influences are as strong in humans as they are in lower animals.
B)after age 25,testosterone and rates of violent crime decrease together.
C)variations in testosterone seem to have no effect on behavior within the normal range of teen boys and adult men.
D)higher rates of testosterone are associated with less aggressiveness in males.

Question 10

Who among the following argued that there is an inborn aggressive drive?

A)Bandura
B)Berkowitz
C)Lorenz
D)Dollard

Question 11

How intense and reactive we are in infancy reflects our

A)serotonin levels.
B)aggressive instinct.
C)temperament.
D)social learning.

Question 12

Which of the following is an example of aggression as it is defined in the text?

A)Sam accidentally slams the car door too quickly,and it hits Tim's knee.
B)Luisa urges her classmates not to vote for Marcy for dormitory senator,citing some rumors about Marcy's social life.
C)Carla,a dentist,delivers a shot of Novocain before pulling her patient's tooth.
D)Joe's eagerness and enthusiasm resulted in his being promoted to sales manager in a very short time.

Question 13

A study of brain activity in the prefrontal cortex of murderers found

A)no differences between these men and normal controls.
B)less activity than normal.
C)spikes in activity level.
D)more activity than normal.

Question 14

The blocking of goal-directed behavior is called

A)instrumental aggression.
B)hostile aggression.
C)frustration.
D)displacement.

Question 15

Of the following,which is the best example of instrumental aggression?

A)An angry football player tackles a quarterback after he attempts a long pass.
B)A jealous wife finds her husband with another woman and shoots them both.
C)A group of mercenaries,hired to kill the dictator of a small country,arrange to poison him.
D)A man smashes his TV set after he cannot get it to work.

Question 16

Sigmund Freud argued that aggression ultimately springs from

A)an innate sexual drive.
B)a primitive death urge.
C)observation of aggressive adult models.
D)blocking of goal-directed behavior.

Question 17

_______ aggression aims to hurt only as a means to some other end.

A)Manipulative
B)Duplicitous
C)Hostile
D)Instrumental

Question 18

Research on alcohol and aggression has indicated that

A)alcohol unleashes aggression when people are provoked.
B)people who have been drinking commit more than half of all homicides.
C)in experiments,intoxicated people administer stronger shocks.
D)All of the above.

Question 19

It was raining out and Jessie's car had a flat tire.After she managed to fix it,she arrived home late only to find someone had parked in her assigned parking spot.When she entered her apartment,she kicked her pet cat who was waiting at the door.Jessie's behavior is perhaps most easily explained in terms of

A)the frustration-aggression theory.
B)the adaptation-level phenomenon.
C)Murphy's law.
D)the social learning theory.

Question 20

Most terrorism is considered _______ aggression.

A)manipulative
B)duplicitous
C)hostile
D)instrumental

Question 21

,the frustration-aggression relationship is mediated by the role of

A)gender.
B)age.
C)anger.
D)neurotransmitters.

Question 22

The pain-attack response has been observed in

A)rats.
B)monkeys.
C)snakes.
D)many varied species.

Question 23

now believes that _______ is the basic trigger of hostile aggression.

A)aversive stimulation
B)neural impulses
C)frustration
D)rage

Question 24

In a revision of the frustration-aggression theory,Berkowitz emphasized the importance of

A)anger,an emotional readiness to aggress.
B)the role of biochemical influences,such as alcohol.
C)relative deprivation and the adaptation level phenomenon.
D)catharsis as a reducer of frustration.

Question 25

In a famous experiment by Albert Bandura and his colleagues,children watched an adult attack a Bobo doll with a mallet.They were then shown some toys that they were forbidden to play with.When they were taken to another room,they

A)began to cry.
B)attacked a Bobo doll.
C)verbally attacked the adult experimenter.
D)chose to watch a violent rather than a nonviolent film.

Question 26

,students who answered questionnaires while they were _______ reported feeling more tired and aggressive,and expressed more hostility toward a stranger than did participants in a control group.

A)distracted by loud noises
B)in an uncomfortably hot room
C)being closely observed
D)eating popcorn and peanuts

Question 27

Compared to the national rate,abused children are _______ times _______ likely to abuse their own children.

A)4;less
B)4;more
C)10;less
D)10;more

Question 28

According to Albert Bandura,an important influence on one's tendency to be aggressive is

A)hormonal factors.
B)how much anger or frustration has built up inside.
C)one's hereditary predisposition to be aggressive.
D)observations of others' behavior.

Question 29

Within U.S.subcultures,

A)cities and areas populated by southerners have much higher White homicide rates than those populated by northerners.
B)cities and areas populated by Midwesterners have much higher White homicide rates than those populated by southerners.
C)White southern men are less likely to own a gun.
D)White southern men are half as likely as rural Midwesterner White men to support wars.

Question 30

Jason instigates more and more fights with younger children on the school playground because it gains him the attention and respect of his friends.This most clearly suggests that his aggression is

A)the result of frustration.
B)instinctive.
C)a learned response.
D)the result of displacement.

Question 31

After arguing with her boyfriend over the telephone,Roberta smashes down the receiver and then throws the phone across the room.This behavior most clearly demonstrates

A)the weapons effect.
B)displacement.
C)instrumental aggression.
D)Parkinson's second law.

Question 32

Which of the following has NOT been linked with aggressive behavior according to your text?

A)dashed expectations
B)a personal insult
C)physical pain
D)an unexpected request

Question 33

According to the social learning theory,whether we act aggressively depends on

A)the aversive event.
B)the anticipated consequences.
C)the role of the parent.
D)bodily symptoms.

Question 34

The redirection of aggression to a target other than the source of the frustration is referred to as

A)displacement.
B)substitution.
C)instrumental aggression.
D)projection.

Question 35

Frustration grows when

A)our motivation to achieve a goal is weakened.
B)we did not expect gratification.
C)we are completely blocked in attaining our goal.
D)we are surprised by a consequence.

Question 36

In relation to aggression,the most studied environmental irritant is

A)pain.
B)cigarette smoke.
C)air pollution.
D)heat.

Question 37

Displaced aggression is most likely to occur when the target _______ to the instigator.

A)shares no similarity
B)shares some similarity
C)is somehow related
D)is unrelated

Question 38

Research on the role of family influences on aggression indicates that

A)abused children later abuse their own children at four times the national rate.
B)higher rates of violence occur when fathers care for the children.
C)an only child tends to be aggressive in social situations outside the family.
D)physical punishment suppresses aggression in children.

Question 39

A person kicking the wall after losing a game of poker is an example of

A)regression.
B)displacement.
C)relative deprivation.
D)the weapons effect.

Question 40

Violent crimes are more likely committed

A)in the winter rather than the summer.
B)when the weather is hot.
C)on nights with a full moon.
D)during rainy periods.

Question 41

found that frustrated men delivered more shocks when

A)guns happened to be in the room.
B)badminton racquets happened to be in the room.
C)they had just received a shot that lowered their serotonin levels.
D)they were initially depressed.

Question 42

invited angered participants to hit a punching bag while either ruminating about the person who angered them or thinking about becoming physically fit.A third group of participants did not hit the punching bag.When given a chance to administer loud blasts of noise to the person who angered them,people in _______ condition(s)felt angrier and were more aggressive.

A)the non-punching bag
B)the punching bag plus fitness thoughts
C)the punching bag plus rumination
D)none of these

Question 43

What is aggression? Based on your own experiences,give an example of instrumental aggression.

Question 44

The near consensus among social psychologists is that

A)viewing or participating in violence fails to produce catharsis.
B)hitting a punching bag reduces aggression.
C)sexual materials provide an outlet for bottled-up impulses.
D)venting to reduce anger is like using gasoline to put out a fire.

Question 45

Review the research on aggression cues and violence.

Question 46

Explain the social learning approach to controlling aggression.

Question 47

Myers suggests that one way we could reduce aggression is by

A)reacting to crime after it happens.
B)forbidding children to watch TV.
C)training parents how to discipline without violence.
D)outlawing video games.

Question 48

Research suggests that the sight of a weapon can

A)elicit frustration.
B)sensitize one to the dangers of violence.
C)prime aggressive thoughts.
D)produce catharsis.

Question 49

Given the review of research on heat and aggression in the text,you can conclude that the relationship between these two variables is

A)positive.
B)negative.
C)neutral.
D)curvilinear.

Question 50

Explain Berkowitz's revised frustration-aggression theory.