The biological and learning perspectives

The biologic and learnedness placements ill al upset for re primary(prenominal)s a substantial problem today. According to Berkowitz (1975) assault end be delimit as any deportment which is intended to cause abuse to a nonher person whether physiologic everyy or verbally. This investigation is an valuation of the biologic and encyclopaedism locations of psychology accounting for the evolution of intrusion in children.Aggression from the biologic perspective is seen as an innate demeanor which is familialally transferred from the p atomic number 18nts to their military issue. Supplementary biologic factors which cause belligerence atomic number 18 low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, as well as sure sense structures such as the hypothalamus and amygdala, that when manipulated, whitethorn result in self-assertive behavior.When considering the nurture perspective and surroundal determinants of invasion in children there ar identify factors which bunk an essential intent. The observations of early(a)s behaviour as demonstrated by Albert Bandura (1961) as well as the frustration ill will system suggested by Dollard (1939) extradite been constitute to be considerable factors in the organic evolution of belligerence. Video games sacrifice overly been identified as a contributing cause of aggression in children.This examination investigates the origins of childhood aggression and evaluates two take issueing perspectives, these creation the biologic and breeding perspective, and collectively concludes that there ar various factors which contribute to a child acting battlefully.However, a collective understanding and strong evaluation of both the biological and acquisition perspective has led to a stronger readyation of understanding childhood aggression. Therefore, to amply understand the origins of self-assertive behaviour, both biological and environmental factors must be considered within their limited s cope. This leads to the completion that there argon multiple forces which lead a child to acting offensively accordingly biological and environmental factors which offset aggression preserve non be isolated.Word Count 282ContentsBiological perspective v military rank of the biological perspective ixLearning perspective xiEvaluation of the learning perspective xvConclusion xviiReferences xixBibliography xxiIntroductionThere are many expressions in which aggression lot be defined. According to Berkowitz (1975) aggression is any behaviour which causes intentional harm to a nonher person. There are many different forms of aggression which include verbal, physical and emotional behaviours that are ap enkindle in some children. Studies conducted on children (ranging in age from approximately 3 to 15 long time old) suggest that aggression develops in children based on their biological background or their environmental context. This try on is an evaluation of the biological perspec tive and learning perspective of psychology accounting for the maturement of aggression in children.This issue is worthy of investigation since aggression has twist a substantial social problem amongst future generations. Alarming news articles and reports focus on strong-growing acts. Children and youth growing up all to a greater extent or less the realness are resorting to violence on a daily theme. It has ceaselessly appealed to me to understand the basis of fast-growing(a) behaviour as I get under ones skin seen this behaviour amongst most children and teenagers, as well as adults. It is my wonder and eagerness to discover more about the ripening of aggression from two opposing views, these being the biological and learning, which have motivated me to undertake this look for topic for my extended essay. This essay is aimed specifically to evaluate the richness of innate drives and the environmental determinants of belligerent behaviour.Biological perspectiveThe biological perspective of psychology is based on the assumption that behaviour is biologically determined. In Weiten (2007) text, the biological perspective belief that is referred to is that all psychological issues kibosh from a physiological background. Therefore, aggression in children, according to the biological perspective, is considered to be an innate behaviour. Biological factors which pioneer aggressive behaviour in children are hereditary pattern, where aggression whitethorn be passed from the parents to their off cringe, as well as low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, and the activity of certain structures in the brain, that when manipulated may trigger aggressive behaviour. Many of the theories and case studies that have been put forward to support the hypothesis that aggression in children is biologically determined will be discussed in further detail.The biological perspective suggests that aggression in children is inherited through the traits of parent s. Many theories have been driven by fetchings from research on animals, which highlight that there is some genetic aspect to aggression. selective breeding has been one of the longest existing methods to find the existence of a phenotypic characteristic. In 1979 a Finnish psychologist, Kristi Lagerspetz, took the most aggressive mice from an assembly and mated them with other aggressive mice, and similarly the same utilize for those non-aggressive mice. Lagerspetzs procedure was repeated over 26 generations of mice giving birth to their offspring (cited in Grivas.J, Carter.L 2005). The significant end of this experiment was that the mice that had been bred for aggressive tendencies demonstrated immense levels of aggression where they instantly attacked other mice sharing the same cage. Mice that were not bred with aggressive mice did not act aggressively when other mice attacked them, they did not illustrate the tendency to retaliate.Lagerspetzs experiment can be criticised on the intellect that it cannot be conducted with humans because it is drawly unethical. A significant contribution of this selective breeding experiment is its illustration of a genetic basis of aggression and how it can be passed onto the offspring. These mice had a practical wages over humans because these species have a short gestation peak, which is essential as aggressive behaviour can be monitored over successive generations in a short period of time. The mice can have their behaviours observed in a lab, inappropriate humans. This is in like manner a practical advantage as the mice were all kept in the same environmental conditions hence their behaviour would not differ from one mouse to another because they shared the same environment.Arising from this experiment is the criticism of extrapolating results from animals to humans. Despite some analogy mingled with humans and animals there is still a large difference between them, therefore a direct link cannot be made betw een mice and children. Mice species have differing logic and reasoning capacities as compared to humans, hence mice do not facilitate the opportunity to choose to be aggressive or not, whereas children have the potentiality of logically choosing to act aggressively.On the other hand, more efficient methods of demonstrating that aggression in children is an inherited behaviour is emphasised by other research methodologies such as twin studies. Twin studies suggest that aggression in children is an inherited trait passed on from parents to their offspring. Twin studies are genuinely useful for the reason that superposable twins are monozygotic, and their genetic makeup is identical. Hence, all additional differences in their behaviour are accounted by their environment and go steadys as an individual. In one turn over, conducted by Caspi (1998), data was collected from identical and non-identical twins chase a questionnaire asking various personal and non-personal questions. The results indicated that aggressive behaviour was only partly inherited, and that environmental factors vie an equally contributing role. However, according to Baron and Richardson (1994), the tendency to be aggressive is not passed on from the parents to the offspring rather the temperament which is capable of making someone more or less aggressive can be inherited. This twin study is clearly indicative of the inheritance of aggressive behaviour, yet it cannot be claimed that inheritance is the only key factor which causes aggressive behaviour or the tendency to be aggressive in children.Over time research has also consistently indicated that low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin plays a central role in increased levels of aggression in children. In a study conducted at the National make for of Mental Health (Bethasda MD), a positive correlation was found between low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin and the levels of aggression in children with attention deficit hyp eractivity disorder (Mitsis.E et al, 2000). In another study conducted by Russian researchers, silver medal foxes were studied. It was found that those foxes which had been bred for over 30 years for domestic behaviour, showed no defensive reactions to humans because they had high levels of serotonin in various structures of the brain, compared to the foxes which had been bred without freedom (Popova et al, 1991). These studies clearly highlight the role which serotonin plays in causing aggressive behaviour amongst children the lower the levels of serotonin the higher the level of aggression.Once again, this research could be criticised on the grounds that it is difficult to associate these findings to children as they are different beings. The above experiments are of considerable value as the foxes could be trained and kept over an extended period of time where their behaviour is closely observed, unlike humans who cannot be kept in such environments.Certain split of the brain ha ve been found to be responsible for the development of aggression in children. The structure of the hypothalamus and the amygdala located within the brain are a leading biological cause of aggressive behaviour. Both structures communicate with each other via electric signals. The hypothalamus and amygdala can be manipulated using electrical currents, and they may be switched on or off disabling their normal operation using an electrode. Bard (1934) investigated the effect of lesions on the levels of aggression in cats. Bard found that when parts of the cortex were removed from the cats, they displayed sham rage where the cats acted aggressively. He also found that when parts of the hypothalamus were removed the sham rage disappeared, clearly demonstrating that the manipulation of the hypothalamus and cortex plays a role in the development of aggression.Evaluation of the biological perspectiveThe biological approach of explaining aggressive behaviour in children is very scientific an d is consequently regarded as reliable. It is based on many experimental studies which are conducted in science laboratory conditions in order to eliminate any environmental influences on the findings. However, the location of the experiments is not only a strength but also a potential helplessness. The biological perspective involves low ecological cogency where most studies are conducted within laboratory conditions. Experiments conducted in the laboratory will most certainly take different results then in real-life situations as participants will not demonstrate the exact same behaviour in real-life situations as they will under examination. Thus, this weakness does not implicate that such laboratory experiments are invaluable rather they are limited to generalisabilty. However, positive correlations between real life situations can be drawn, highlighting that laboratory studies are considerably useful.The biological perspective can be criticised on the basis that aggression in children cannot be related to studies that have been conducted on animals. An argument stemming from this point is that it is not executable to apply animal findings to humans regardless of the similarities because they are different beings. Parallels between humans and animals may be oversimplified, and therefore social, as well as learning processes, must also be taken into consideration. The summary of animal results from the biological perspective requires cautious interpretation. However, using animals to demonstrate the link between childhood aggression and biological factors is also beneficial. Studies such as the breeding of generations as conducted by Lagzerspetz and lesions on certain parts of the brain, conducted by Bard, are contributing factors in the development of aggression which cannot be conducted on humans because it will cause psychological and physical harm to the participants and most likely result in death. Similarly, there is always some sort of connecti on that can be drawn between animals and humans, therefore using animals can be a starting point to understanding the biological bases of aggression in children.Another weakness of explaining the development of aggression in children from the biological perspective is the reductionist nature of the biological approach. This is one of the main weaknesses which the biological perspective incorporates. The biological perspective does not regard or take into the account the fundamental interaction of the mind and body with the environment, rather it only takes into consideration neurological processes. Environmental factors are also not placed into perspective. This is a downfall as complex human behaviours cannot always be explained on a genetic basis the skirt environment also plays a central role in influencing and triggering aggressive behaviours. One certain structure of the brain cannot be the only factor which is responsible for the development of aggression in children, because most structures of the brain are connected and their influence or triggering of behaviour cannot therefore be based in one specific area.Correspondingly, the findings of all studies conducted cannot be generalised to all children. These findings are applicable to a small sample and findings cannot be predicted to be the same for a different sample of children as all children are different. Yet, this can be a starting point to understanding the basis of aggressive behaviour.Learning perspectiveThe learning perspective is established on the basis that although everyone is born with a genetic endowment which is the root of instinctual behaviours, the majority of behaviour is learnt from the environment. The profound principle of this assumption suggests that aggression in children does not purely develop as a result of biological factors, rather it accounts for a very electric razor part. According to Bandura (1961) aggression can be learnt from the observation of other people and t heir aggressive behaviour. Aggression in children can also be learnt through the observation of frustrated people who surround them and frustration also triggers aggressive behaviour (Dollard 1939). Alarming articles and studies have revealed that unfounded television receiver games are linked to aggressive behaviour amongst children.Firstly, a theory proposed to support the theory of aggression from the learning perspective is the frustration-aggression hypothesis which was proposed by privy Dollard (1939). The frustration aggression theory suggests that frustration is the main factor which contributes to aggression. For example, when an individual is frustrated, in a certain situation, they will immediately display aggressive behaviour. According to this hypothesis, aggression will only occur receivable to frustration and no other particular factor. Also, according to Glassman (2000) the level of aggression demonstrated is purely drug-addicted on how frustrated one may be. Fo r instance when a child is prevented from taking a kind of action or possessing something it is most likely believed that the child will become aggressive occurring as a result of being frustrated.Barker et al (1941) further investigated frustration as a cause of aggression in young children. In their study, children were shown a roomful of attractive toys which were kept out of their reach. The children were kept away from the toys for a while before they were allowed to play with them. The controlled conditioned group of the children were allowed to immediately play with the toys. Similar to Dollards findings (1939), it was observed from this conducted study that the children who were frustrated because they had to wait before being open to the toys, played aggressively with the toys by smashing and stomping on them. On the other hand, the children who were allowed to play immediately with the toys handled them carefully and played happily.One social determinant of aggressive be haviour is Albert Banduras social learning theory (1961) which highlights the role of observation and its consequences on the aggressive behaviour in children from the learning perspective. Albert Bandura views most human behaviour as learned by observing a simulate or solely another person, which affects a childs view of how this new behaviour can be substantial and how this new attained behaviour is a guide for their actions. This provides the basis of explaining aggressive behaviour in children from the learning perspective. Banduras (1961) most well k instantern experiment was the Bobo doll experiment the Bobo doll being a pliable clown doll. In this experiment Bandura examined the consequential actions of children observing an adult behaving aggressively with a Bobo doll. During the experiment he had children watching models acting aggressively towards a Bobo doll. They watched the video of the model constantly acting aggressively by sitting on the doll, punching it and kick ing it repeatedly. Bandura had other children watch a non aggressive model playing sedately with the Bobo doll. Once the children were exposed to such models, they were taken into another room where there were many toys amongst them the Bobo doll. The results from this experiment indicated that children, who were exposed to the aggressive model and observed their acts, imitated aggressive behaviour towards the Bobo doll. In contrast, the children who were exposed to the non-aggressive model showed no or very little aggressive behaviour.Albert Banduras Bobo Doll experiment highlights the role of observation in childrens learning. Children were the subject as they are less socially conditioned unlike adults. However, this experiment raises the possibility that children may have legal opinion that this experiment was a game as a consequence of the Bobo doll having a spring which causes it to spring back immediately after being knocked down. A criticism of this research is that it is n ot ecological the children may have not acted aggressively towards any human in real life. Another potential weakness is the fact that the children may have not been exposed to the Bobo doll previously, hence they did not know how to play with it.A criticism of the social learning theory is also that it does not take into account the physical and mental changes which a child undergoes as they mature. Children at different ages may respond to laboratory experiments in different ways.Much like observation of others behaviours, violent video games and television shows have also been proved to trigger aggression in children. The learning perspective suggests that children who play violent video games such as Doom, Wolfenstein 3D or Mortal Combat and others often experience aggressive behaviour, either physically or verbally. Violent video games have a supplementary violation on young children and trigger aggressive behaviour more than violent television shows because they are more in teractive, engaging the child in aggressive acts and ultimately rewarding them for acting aggressively within the game. Dr. Craig A. Anderson, Ph.D. (2000) states, This medium is potentially more dangerous than word picture to violent television and movies. Dr. Anderson of Iowa State University in Ames and his colleagues found that in the U.S and Japan, Nipponese and American children who played violent video games demonstrated more aggressive behaviour months later compared to their peers who didnt. In Andersons study, 181 Japanese students aged between 12 and 15 years old and 364 U.S. children aged between 9 and12 years old were tested. The U.S and Japanese children named their favourite video games and how often they played. The children from both groups were later on asked to rate their level of aggression and reports from their teachers and peers were also taken into consideration. From the results it was found that the children from each group who were exposed to more violen t video games were much more aggressive than those who were less exposed. Comparisons were made between their prior levels of aggression and how there was a dramatic trick up in this level (Cited in BBC News, Video games Increase Aggression, Health share, 2000). Violent video games can impact on childrens aggression levels, as children begin to believe that the world is a hostile place, and aggressive acts are an acceptable part of normal daily life. Presumably, constant and excessive exposure to violent video games causes children to become desensitized to violence. Once they have been engaged in aggressive acts it impacts on the children emotionally, and as a consequence these children find it much easier and acceptable to engage in violence and aggressive acts.A criticism of this study is that the pagan context of the children was not taken into account. Japan and the U.S are two differing cultures hence what is deemed as aggressive in Japan may not be aggressive in the U.S an d vice versa. Hence, it is difficult to compare the behaviour of these children whilst ignoring cultural factors.Leonard Berkowitz (1989) investigated the effect of pain and discomfort on individuals to demonstrate their likelihood of acting aggressively. He bring on pain by placing the participants give in cold or warm water while they distributed rewards and punishments to a partner. Berkowitz identified that those who had their hands placed in the cold water caused greater harm to their partner than those who had their hands immersed in warm water. This is sufficient to draw the conclusion that pain is a contributing factor to aggression.Evaluation of the learning perspectiveThe learning perspective also incorporates strengths and weaknesses. Similar to the biological perspective of explaining aggressive behaviour in children, it is reductionist. It explains aggressive behaviour in terms of a characteristic which is being learnt although it does not disavow the genetic endowme nt of aggressive behaviour. The learning perspective argues that aggressive behaviour is learnt through observation, and triggered by the surrounding environment and conditions. It simplifies the occurrence of certain behaviours, especially aggression, into a few steps. For instance, the problem of reduction is evident in Albert Banduras study of the Bobo doll whereby aggressive behaviour is reduced to the process of imposture. Thus, it has overlooked other leading causes of the development of aggression including the childrens upbringing and home environment. Children were varied therefore some children may have been brought up in a violent home and exposed to many aggressive situations. This may have affected the way they acted in the laboratory and the ultimate results of the experiment. It was also assumed that all biological influences such as levels of serotonin are identical for each participant.The frustration aggression hypothesis supported by Dollard (1939) is an ineffici ent method of demonstrating how childhood aggression develops as in some cases, such as learned helplessness, frustration may not lead to aggression rather it may lead to depression. Therefore, frustration is not the only key factor which contributes to aggressive behaviour there are other sources which may lead to this same outcome.The learning perspective also denies some very important mental processes which also result in the development of aggression in children. This perspective does not take into account how certain brain structures may trigger aggressive behaviour, in other words it does not take into account neurological processes, and rather it simply accounts for the influences of daily life and the environmental context which a person is brought up in. The learning perspective does not incorporate any biological or cognitive processes which are also responsible for the development of aggression.Nevertheless, the learning perspective focuses on the environment and the con dition in which a child is situated to produce an aggressive response. It has many practical applications which have been effective in explaining the development of aggressive behaviour. It clearly highlights how certain behaviours, especially aggression, can be learned by the observation of others.The learning perspective also has a low ecological validity, whereby the children who were engaging in the experiment may have acted differently in the laboratory than what they would have in a real life situation. To be specific, Albert Banduras Bobo doll experiment can be criticised on the grounds that the childrens aggression was measured away from their natural environment. However, if such experiments are conducted in a more realistic manner, then the results would be more beneficial in terms of understanding how aggressive behaviour in children develops.ConclusionThis essay was specifically an evaluation of the biological and learning perspectives of psychology accounting for the de velopment of aggression in children. Having considered the interpretations of the development of aggression in children from both the biological and learning perspective, and the criticisms which arise from the research conducted, it can be concluded that both the biological and learning perspectives contribute to the development of aggression in children. In terms of the biological perspective, aggression is viewed as purely being based on biological basis. It is regarded as highly reliable since it is based on science. However, the learning perspective views aggression as being unrelated to genes, rather aggression is learnt. The learning perspectives social learning theory is a useful bill for the aggressive behaviour of children. It not only applies to direct experiences such as being disciplined by parents, but rather at all times such as when watching television. The frustration-aggression hypothesis has a weaker stance, because frustration does not always induce aggression, rather it may encourage retaliation. This hypothesis suggests that frustration accounts for all aggressive acts. For this reason it is not completely justified, because there are more determinants of aggressive behaviour.Both the biological perspective and learning perspective are based on evidence and practical studies which have been conducted. However, the learning perspective views aggression in children as having some sort of biological basis, yet through experience and reinforcement aggression becomes learned and evident amongst children. For instance, the role of the parent is paramount in using the biological factors of the child to mould the child and guide them through their development. If a childs genes are inclined to be aggressive, the parent within the environment will attempt to nurture and accommodate for their childs genes by attempting to provide a unagitated lifestyle. Parents may also choose to put their child in a hobby that is sports oriented to leave for th e aggressive levels in order to use their energy in a positive way, where they stimulate mentation and reasoning skills preventing the child from resorting to aggressive acts. From this it is clearly evident that both the biological perspective and learning perspective account for and contribute to the development of aggression in children as it is difficult to isolate the contributing factors. It is clear that innate biological factors may be present in a child however the environment sets the limits on how to behave and deal with social influences that influence a child to act aggressively.Understanding the underlying factors which contribute to aggressive behaviour will form the basis of combating the levels of violence all around the world where children, youth and adolescents often resort to violence. Through further investigation, the effect of cognitive and mental processes may now be evaluated to determine their influence on childhood aggression which will lead to education al programs being implemented in schools and for the general society.ReferencesBooksBaron. R.A Richardson. D.C (1994). Human Aggression (2nd ed.). Plenum Publishing.Berkowitz, L. (1975). A survey of Social Psychology. Hillsdale, IL Dryden pleadDollard, J. D. (1939). Frustration and Aggression. New Haven CN Yale University Press.Glassman, W. (2000). Approaches to Psyhcology (2nd ed.). Philadelphia Open University Press.Grivas.J, Carter. L. (2005). Psychology for the VCE Student (4th ed.). Australia John Wiley Sons.Weiten, W. (2007). Psychology Themes and Variations (7th ed.). Thomson Wadsworth.ArticlesAnne, H. (2009). Violent video games linked to child aggression. 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