Humanity : Intense (Aggression and Violence)

Aggression and Violence

Definition:

Psychologically, aggression refers to a range of behaviors resulting in both physical and psychological harm to oneself, others or objects in the environment. It  happens in a number of ways, including verbally, mentally and physically.

This behavior is intended to injure another person, psychologically or physically, or destroy another person's property. The emphasis is on  the word “intended.” Aggression is an intention more than it is an action. When a person opposes the social rules that apply to a particular situation, it may be considered aggression.

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Violence is a form of physical assault with intent to injure another person or destroy the property of others. Violence cannot usually be anticipated. The causes that lead to violence or why some individuals “value” violence may be related to social status, personal issues, or may be caused by institutional forces. Violence is indifferent to whom it affects and is found in many areas of life including the workplace, home, sports performances, and general public areas.

Introduction

Everyone has experienced anger at one point in their lives and some of us, mostly males, by statistics have channeled that anger into violence, perhaps by throwing a punch during a hockey game or road rage.

Aggression on a sinister scale, is in the form of murder, wars and genocide. Human psychologist and biologist have been trying to understand what fuels the different levels of human aggression , from fisticuffs to nation-on-nation battle.

Yearly, in the United States alone, over 5 million children are directly exposed to violence. The most common form of destructive aggression takes place in the home in the form of physical abuse or domestic violence.

The impact of these various forms of violence on children and adolescents is dangerous, but one result appears clear: the number of aggressive and violent youth is increasing dramatically. Young murderers (under age 18) in the United States tripled from 1984 to 1994. Currently 28,000 children and adolescents are known murderers. The number of violent crimes committed by youth is expected to double by the year 2010.

   

Forms of Aggression 

Aggression can take a variety of forms, including:

• Physical
• Physical aggression often involves acts of violence taken with the intention of causing harm to the recipient, including death, by using weapons or even someone's bare hands. Anger is a frequent source of aggression, but aggressive behavior can also result from intoxication or frustration, according to Wrong Diagnosis and Healthy Children.

• Verbal                   
• The children's taunt "sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me" fails to take account for emotional abuse carried out through verbal hostility. Verbal aggression includes behavior such as bullying, threats or yelling.  The Mayo Clinic includes name-calling and insults under the category of domestic violence. Put-downs, intentional or perceived, can have profound detrimental effects on the recipients. Musician Karen Carpenter reportedly became anorexic after reading a review that called her "chubby." She died in 1983 of complications from anorexia nervosa at only 32 years old, according to Queen City News and OC Weekly.

• Mental
•  Nonverbal intimidation often implies the threat of violence, at least in the perception of the person at the receiving end. Stalking often involves one or more forms of nonverbal intimidation, including following the victim, planting malicious software in a victim's computer, sending unwanted gifts and vandalism against the victim's property, according to Sexual Harassment Support. A famous example of nonverbal intimidation occurred during the movie "Fatal Attraction," when Alex kills her victim's daughter's pet rabbit.

• Emotional
•  The Mayo Clinic defines passive aggression as an indirect way of expressing displeasure or anger. Passive aggression is often generated by resentment on the part of someone who is unable or unwilling to express this resentment directly. Deliberately or subconsciously performing a task poorly is one form of passive aggression, agreeing to perform a task but failing to do so is another, according to Psychology Today. Procrastination can also be a form of passive aggression

Purposes of Aggression

Aggression can also serve a number of different purposes:

• To express anger or hostility
• To assert dominance
• To intimidate or threaten
• To achieve a goal
• To express possession
• A response to fear
• A reaction to pain
• To compete with others

Types of Aggressive Behavior

Aggression can be distressing or harmful to the recipient.  Types of behavior that may be considered aggressive include the following:

•   Shouting •   Swearing •   Personal insults and name calling •   Racial or sexual comments •   Verbal threats •   Posturing and threatening gestures •  Abusive phone calls, letters, online messages •   Other forms of harassment •   Emotional abuse •   Sarcasm ·         Immediate conditions

·  Threat to self-esteem, status, or respect, particularly in public situations •  Aggression to save face •  Long term conditions •  Repeated threats to self-worth or status •  School shootings •  Commonalities: •  Perpetrators had low social status, respect, and self-esteem • Communities were small, tight-knit, and isolated •  Associated masculinity = violence

Psychological

The Brain's Role in Mediating Human Behavior

·           The human brain controls all human behavior — aggression, violence, fear, ideology and, all human emotional, behavioral, cognitive and social functioning.

·             It weighs three pound and consists of 100 billion neurons and 1000 billion glial cells. By studying certain principles of brain organization and function can lead us to the insights especially the neurological factors involved in violence and aggression.

·           The brain has a hierarchical organization, from the lower, simpler areas to the more complex higher cortical areas.

a.   Simple, regulatory functions (e.g., regulation of respiration, heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature) are mediated by the 'lower' parts of the brain (brainstem and midbrain)

b.  the most complex functions (e.g., language and abstract thinking) by cortical structures.

·          
        Any factors which increase the activity or reactivity of the brainstem (e.g., chronic traumatic stress, testosterone, dysregulated serotonin or norepinephrine systems) or decrease the moderating capacity of the limbic or cortical areas (e.g., neglect) will increase an individual's aggressivity, impulsivity, and capacity to display violence.

·              As the brain develops and the sub-cortical and cortical areas organize, they begin to modulate and 'control' the more primitive and 'reactive' lower portions of the brain. During infancy and childhood motor, sensory, emotional, cognitive and social experiences, the brain develops and matures to tolerate frustration.

·              A frustrated three year old will have a difficult time moderating the reactive, brainstem  of arousal. He will scream, kick, bite, throw and hit. However, in older child when frustrated he may feel like kicking, biting and spitting, but has the capacity to moderate those urges.

·      ·         The lack and denial of life developmental experiences (which leads to underdevelopment of cortical, sub-cortical and limbic areas) will result in persistence of primitive, immature behavioral reactivity, and, thereby, make an individual susceptible to violent behavior.

·            The most dangerous children are combination uncontrollable of experiences. Neglecting child developmental and childhood traumatic stress create violent, remorseless children.

·               Impairment of the brainstem functions (e.g., anxiety, impulsivity, poor affect regulation, motor hyperactivity) are then poorly moderated by limbic and cortical neurophysiology and functions (e.g., empathy, problem-solving skills) which result of chaotic and under socialized development of the child or person. This experience-based imbalance can cause neuropsychiatric problems and violent behavior.

·           A behavioral disorder characterized by extreme expressions of anger, often to the point of uncontrollable rage. These expressions of anger are disproportionate to the situation to which the person is reacting is called The Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED).

·         The Conduct Disorder under deficit - attention and disruptive behavior disorders and is characterized by:

·      lack of empathy

·      physical and verbal aggression

·      cruel behavior toward humans and animals

·      truancy

·      stealing

·      lying

·      vandalism

·      destructive behavior.

·         

Common Causes Aggressive Behavior  (student's behavior)

Developmental

Research has indicates that antisocial behavior, including aggression, is a developmental trait that begins as early in life and often continues into adolescence and adulthood.

A number of researchers found  that antisocial behavior develops as a result of the student's behavior and interaction with the social environment and the student's parenting skills. Patterson and colleagues maintain that these behaviors occur in stages and that behaviors of one stage will result in certain a reactions from the student's, leading to further aggressive actions from the student.

A. First Stages

During the first stage of aggressive behavior development, family, harsh parental discipline and poor supervision have resulted in the student being "trained" to engage in aggressive behavior such as hitting. These behaviors become functional as the student are allowed to escape from tasks when he or she acts aggressively. For example, a student may be sent to her room after hitting her brother while they do dishes. Also, aggressive behaviors may reinforce through laughter, attention, and approval of parents, which resulted in their behaviors. Students in these situations do not learn socially skillful responses to others, but they learn aggressive behavior that results in meeting their needs.

B. Rejected by Peer Group

Following this stage, students who are aggressive often find themselves rejected by their peer group and experienced academic failure. Having learned aggressive behaviors in their early childhood, these students become rejected by peers and the social group due to their inability to demonstrate the social skills with peers.

C. Classroom Survival

Patterson and Wood research report that students who engage in aggressive behaviors spend less time on academic tasks and have more difficulty with classroom survival skills (e.g., staying in seat, answering questions). This behavior has resulted in a higher incidence of academic failure. 
 Once students have learned aggressive behavior and experienced peer rejection and academic failure, they are at a higher risk for developing delinquent behavior. They have a tendency to become involved with deviant peer groups engaging in aggressive behaviors (e.g., fighting, property damage). 
The members of the groups reinforced these actions, thus increases repeated occurrence. These long-term outcomes for students who of aggressive behavior are not generally desirable. Students who engage in antisocial behavior throughout childhood and adolescence are at an extremely high risk for becoming school dropouts, having difficulty maintaining employment, committing crimes, and having marital difficulties.

Modeled Aggressive Behavior

On any given day, students are faced with many incidences that result in feelings of anger, frustration, and/or humiliation. These feelings often end in the students reacting aggressively. The most commonly accepted cause for aggressive behavior is that these behaviors are learned through modeling by their role model.  For example, students observe aggressive behavior models when adults engage in verbally abusive or physical punishment of students. Hyman and Perone studied victimization of students in school settings and found that teacher, administrators, and other school personnel who consistently used aggressive behavior toward students in the name of discipline, and students learn that it is acceptable to hit others when one is upset or angry.

a. Role Model

Students cannot be expected to expand their responses to anger if they see only a limited number of inappropriate responses by their role modeled. Appropriate alternatives response by teachers can be model to aggressive behavior by remaining calm in anger-inducing situations, talking out the problem, or walking away from the problem until they feel calm enough to discuss the situation. This alternative can practiced in a formal social skills training.

Rudo, Powell, and Dunlap report on a review of the literature related that, a reviewed of 27 studies and offer compelling evidence that students exposed to violence in their homes are at greater risk for developing behavior problems themselves.

 

b. Media Influence

The media also offer plenty of aggressive models for students through TV programs geared to the interest of young persons. Lieberman suggests that students who are exposed to media violence become desensitized to aggressive and violent behavior. This factor has led to increased levels of violent and aggressive behavior among youth. One has to watch only a few minutes of professional wrestling on TV, a popular show for young boys, to understand the problem. Unfortunately, many parents, especially fathers, don't realize the negative influence these shows have on their sons' behavior at home and school. But teachers see the effects every day.

c. Delayed Outcome

Many studies have focused on the relationship between television and video game violence can manifest later into aggressive behavior in students. A review of longitudinal studies revealed that viewing TV violence at one age has connections with aggressive behaviors demonstrated at a later age. "Of a large number of parent, family, and socioeconomic variables measured at age 8, television was the single best predictor of aggression in 18-year-olds".

d. Less Sensitized

Students who are exposed to high levels of media violence become desensitized to aggression and violence. Interestingly, Wied, Goudena, and Matthys found that 8- to 12-year-old boys referred for their disruptive behaviors were found to show less empathy to sad situations than their peer aged control group. These findings present serious implications for our society in the face of the expanding and increasingly violent movies and games available to students through cable television and DVD /videotape rentals.

e. Easily Accessibility

Violence and aggression are also apparent in many video and computer games, which are easily accessed by students and teenagers. Producers of these games say that blaming schoolyard killings such as those experienced in Jonesboro, Arkansas, on video games is society's way of taking the focus off of other causes of aggression such as poverty and access to guns. However, Grossman suggests that video and computer games may conditioned the youngsters and others to kill without thinking as they become increasingly insensitive to the effects of violence.

        f. Social Skills Deficits

Some proposal have been put forward,  that students act aggressively because they lack alternative skills that would allow them to choose a socially acceptable behavior to deal with a provocative situation in an assertive rather than aggressive manner. Dubow and others report that there is the need for students to develop social competence before they experienced solving problems with their aggressive behavior.

Strain and his colleagues maintain that students often have a limitation of social problem-solving behaviors. Many student in their interaction with environmental especially socially and opportunities, they lacked their social problem-solving skills to their aggressive behaviors.

g. Intrusive Strategies

Neel, Jenkins, and Meadows found that conflict with those of researchers who report that aggressive behavior was caused by deficits in social skills. In their study of 19 preschoolers, ages 3 to 4, Neel and his colleagues found that students who were aggressive demonstrated similar usage of social skills compared with their nonaggressive peers. They conclude that students who were aggressive used a number of social problem-solving strategies just as their nonaggressive counterparts did. The difference was that students who were aggressive used more intrusive types of strategies (e.g., barging into a game) compared with the more socially acceptable strategies used by their nonaggressive peers (e.g., asking for information and questioning before joining the group). A number of authors have suggested this in previous research. The findings of Neel and others suggest that the development of social competence in students who are aggressive should concentrate on strategy content rather than on the number of strategies within the student's repertoire.

Melloy describes several types of peer acceptance of students who demonstrate aggressive behavior. Some students who are aggressive are accepted as leaders by their peers because their peers are afraid to reject them. Other students who are aggressive are often rejected by their peers. A common scene on a playground is for a group of students to terminate their play and move to another area when an aggressive peer tries to join the group.

In the long run, a history of rejection by one's peers can lead to a dependence on less desirable peers and membership in deviant subcultures, which often leads to social maladjustment. Students in these subcultures are frequently reinforced for engaging in aggressive behaviors.

Recognizing Aggression in Others

Usually, it is obvious when someone is aggressive, from his or her actions, words and/or expressions. It is important that anyone who finds themselves in such situations does not respond aggressively to the aggressive behavior as it may only serve to reinforce such behavior.  It is essential to watch for signals that might indicate that a person’s aggression is escalating.

Recognizing Aggression

Signals to be monitored include physical and behavioral changes which can include:

Physical Changes	Behavioral Changes
Sweating / perspiring	Loud speech or shouting
Clenched teeth and jaws	Pointing or jabbing with the finger
Shaking	Swearing/verbal abuse
Muscle tension	Over-sensitivity to what is said
Clenched fists	Standing too close
Rapid breathing/sharp drawing in of breath	Aggressive posture
Staring eyes	Tone of voice
Restlessness, fidgeting	Problems with concentration
Flushed face or extreme paleness of face	Stamping feet
Change in Health of a Family Member	Banging/kicking things
Rise in pitch of voice	Walking away

Be aware that the more extreme signals of aggression presented might indicate that an individual is becoming increasingly agitated, and the potential for this to develop into a risk situation should be seriously considered.  Anyone working in situations where aggression leading to violence is a threat should make sure they have adequate protection.

Factors Influencing Aggressive Behavior

While the precise reasons for an individual behaving aggressively will vary enormously from person to person and situation to situation, there are many factors that make aggression in an individual more likely. 

These include:

•  Aggressive an inborn trait behavior. •  Previous aggressive behavior in similar circumstances has resulted in reward or success. •  Believes that goals will be best achieved through an aggressive response. •  Frustration (e.g., from an inability to communicate effectively). •  Feels threatened. •  Feels powerless. •  Is in pain. ·      Feels justified in being angry

•  Expects to be confronted/treated with hostility. •  Has been in conflict with the individual in the past. •  Is in a state of physiological arousal, e.g. excited, anxious, heart beating faster.  Such arousal could be brought about by exercise, stress, a previous argument and many other things.  Someone in this state is less likely to keep calm. •  Others are behaving aggressively around him/her. •  Pressure from friends or peers to behave aggressively.

Behaviors that Encourage Aggressive Reactions

There are many things that can make people aggressive.  Unfortunately, many individuals experience frustration and anger when dealing with authority, bureaucracy or large organizations. 

Common behaviors that lead to aggression in such situations include:

•  Adopting a patronizing attitude. •  Humiliating or talking down to someone. •  Using wrong names or inappropriate forms of address. •  Using jargon. • Telling off they are wrong to feel/behave as they do.

•  Telling people how they feel. •  Making assumptions. •  Trivializing a person’s problems, worries or concerns. •  Lack of acquiantanceship

 

If your professional life involves dealing with potentially aggressive individuals, it is important to understand that these people may be aggressive because they feel unease.  The feelings of apprehension at approaching an organization, but also perhaps because of the reasons they are making contact. 
This is understandable considering that:

• They are in an unfamiliar place.
• They are often upset or experiencing distress.
• They may already have feelings of frustration or dissatisfaction.
• They may expect to have a battle with the organization in order to have their needs met or worries considered.

For these reasons, it is important on the first contact with a potentially aggressive person to allow them time to express themselves fully. Listen to what they have to say and to encourage them to feel at ease in the unfamiliar situation.  An open, friendly approach at the outset helps to define the relationship as a supportive one, rather than one of confrontation.

   Care should be taken not to reinforce aggressive behavior.  Having an awareness of different types of aggression and implementing some of the coping techniques outlined here will help to deal with aggression.

Coping with Aggression in Others

There are a number of key techniques for dealing with aggression which should be put into practice, especially if it is feared that such aggression may escalate.  These techniques will be helpful to everyone who has to manage aggression in the course their professional life.

• Not Take It Personally

Try not to take hostility personally; you may just be the person in the firing line.

• Aware of your Reactions

Be aware of your own reactions to aggression and try to remain calm yourself.  If you respond aggressively, you will reinforce the other’s behavior.

• Emphatizing

Try to recognize and defuse the aggression as early as possible by showing empathy.  It is generally much easier to avoid the build-up of aggression than to calm things down once anger has flared.

Demonstrate understanding and empathy with the person through reflecting, clarifying and summarizing his/her thoughts and feelings.

• ·         Non-Verbal Behavior

Be aware of your own body language and present a non-threatening, open stance.

Keep good eye contact but ensure this does not appear confrontational.

Move slowly and steadily.  Try to keep physical movements calm.

Respect personal space.

·         Verbal behaviors

Listen to what the other person has to say and accept, recognize and emphasize positive aspects of what is being said.

• ·         Respect

Show respect through polite formalities, although aim to work towards familiarity.

Avoid any expression of power, for example "You must calm down."

·         Own Up

Encourage the aggressor to take responsibility for his/her own behavior and to direct it into more creative or positive outlets, e.g., by making a written complaint rather than verbally criticizing someone/an organization.

Coping With Aggression after the Event

People vary widely in their reactions to the experience of other people’s aggression.  How a person reacts can depend on many factors such as previous experiences and exposure to aggression, upbringing, norms of behavior, gender, culture, age, health, and expectations as well as physiological differences and reactions to stress in general.

Ways of coping with aggression after the event include the following:

• Refer to any guidelines of your organization.
• Report the event to a supervisor.
• Tell others about your experience. 

Expressing feelings and reactions can help to come to terms with what has happened and to understand that many such reactions are a normal response to hostile behavior.

• Analyze

Attempt to analyses what has happened, why the other person behaved as he/she did and what your reactions were.  Discuss this with a supervisor or other member of your organization.

• Stress Management

Put into practice stress management and relaxation techniques.

• Symptoms

Be aware of possible symptoms that may follow such an experience, e.g. feelings of anxiety, disturbed sleep, constantly recalling the event, recurring dreams, physical reactions, depression or difficulties in concentration.

• Don’t Underrate

Do not underplay the stress of an event, either to yourself or to others.  Do not allow others to treat it as minor.  Whilst they may not have been disturbed by such an event, if it distresses you then it is important to deal with it.

Preventing Violence and Aggression for Child

The prime aim should always be to diffuse and prevent the incidence of violence and aggression.

• Seek Support

Wherever possible avoid dealing with aggressive situations alone, always seek support. 

• Sensitize Child Needs

Be aware of the case history of each youngster in your care, and be sensitive to their needs.
 

• Relationship

Understand the significance of your relationship with the youngster. 

• Responds

Always make some response to attention seeking behavior; failure to do so may make the situation worse.

• Communicate

Youngsters should have the opportunity to communicate their concerns with Carers where necessary. Time must be made available to them.

• Threat

Do not issue threats of any sort, but do point out the possible consequences of their actions. Threats usually escalate situations, and if made in the heat of the moment can prove to be impossible to implement.

• Avoid cutting or unkind remarks

Try to find the most positive way of saying what has to be said. This especially applies when talking about the youngster themselves, their family and friends. 

• Shows Disapproval
• Show disapproval of inappropriate behavior, not of the person as an individual. 
• Potential Flashpoint

Be aware of potential flashpoints such as mealtimes and late evenings. If they prove to be problem times, try to plan ahead

• Physical Restraint

If all else fails, 

physical restraint 

may be used only to prevent a child from harming themselves or somebody else. 

  Youngsters who have experienced violence or sexual abuse may find restraint threatening, and those using it should be aware that they may be making themselves vulnerable to future allegations. 

Excerpt and extracts taken with thanks from:

Kendra Cherry  : psychology.about.com/od/aindex/g/aggression.htm

http://www.livescience.com/5333-evolution-human-aggression.html

http://www.devon.gov.uk/index/cyps/fostering/foster_carer-2/foster-care-handbook/fos-good-practice/fos-good-practice8.htm

Chris Blank : http://www.livestrong.com/article/144031-types-human-aggressive-behavior/

http://www.skillsyouneed.com/ps/dealing-with-aggression2.html
http://www.goodtherapy.org/therapy-for-aggression-violence.html

http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/bruceperry/aggression_violence.htm

http://www.education.com/reference/article/aggressive-behavior/?