Do beliefs about aggression predict physical aggression to partners?

Three hypotheses concerning the association between instrumental (I) and expressive (E) beliefs about aggression and physical aggression were assessed among a sample comprising students (n=40), women from a domestic violence shelter (n=29), and male prisoners (n=46), all of whom had committed at least one act of physical aggression to a partner. Participants completed an adapted version of the EXPAGG [Archer and Haigh (1997a): British Journal of Social Psychology 35:1–23] to measure I and E beliefs about aggression, the Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS) [Straus (1979): Journal of Marriage and the Family 41:75–88] for themselves and their partner, and measures of fear and injuries resulting from partner violence. I beliefs predicted self‐reported physical aggression to the partner, most CTS acts of physical aggression, and injuries to the partner, with only minor and limited associations for E beliefs. Correlations for the student and prisoner samples, and for men and women, showed different strengths. The findings supported a general link between I beliefs and aggression but offered no support for the predictions that the link would be restricted to men or to men who showed a persistent pattern of violence to their partners. Aggr. Behav. 29:41–54, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Beliefs About Aggression in an Indian Sample

Studies of Western samples have shown that men tend to view aggression as an instrumental act, whereas women view it in expressive terms. The present Study investigated aggression in two studies. In Study 1 sample of 400 (both sexes, ages 16 and 26 years) young adults from the Indian state of Mizoram. Consistent with western findings, men showed higher instrumental and physical aggression than women, but they also showed higher expressive beliefs, contrary to previous findings. Both instrumental beliefs and physical aggression were higher at 16 than at 26 years of age. Since reliabilities of the scales were low, the questionnaires were translated into Mizo and presented to another similar sample of 201 participants (101 males; the same age groups as in Study 1). The pattern of mean differences and correlations were similar to Study 1, although the reliabilities increased only slightly. Overall, there were some similarities with western samples regarding beliefs about aggression, and sex and age differences in aggression, although the structures of responses appeared more complex.     

Cultural and sex differences in aggression: A comparison between Japanese and Spanish students using two different inventories

Two self‐report inventories developed to assess different dimensions of aggression, the Aggression Questionnaire and the EXPAGG, were administered to a sample (N = 400) of men and women undergraduates in two Japanese and Spanish universities. The factor structure of scales was assessed using exploratory factor analysis. Both questionnaires showed high correlations between their respective scales. In both cultures, males reported more physical aggression, verbal aggression, and hostility as well as higher instrumental beliefs, whereas females reported more expressive representation than males. Japanese students reported more physical aggression than their Spanish counterparts, who reported more verbal aggression, hostility, and anger and more expressive representation of aggression. Aggr. Behav. 27:313–322, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Association of Normative Beliefs and Anger with Aggression and Antisocial Behavior in Russian Male Juvenile Offenders and High School Students

Examined the association of anger experience and two types of normative beliefs with physical aggression and nonaggressive antisocial behavior in 361 juvenile offenders and 206 high school students in Russia. All participants were male and ranged in age from 14 to 18 years. Higher frequency of aggressive acts was significantly associated with higher levels of anger and stronger beliefs that physical aggression is an appropriate course of action in conflicts. After statistically controlling for nonaggressive antisocial behavior, the relationship between physical aggression and antisocial beliefs was not significant. Similarly, with physical aggression controlled, nonaggressive antisocial behavior was uniquely associated with approval of deviancy, but not with anger or beliefs legitimizing aggression. Juvenile offenders reported higher levels of anger experience and higher frequency of aggression and antisocial behavior compared to high school students. There were no differences in normative beliefs between these two groups. This specificity of association of social-cognitive and emotion-regulation processes to aggressive and nonaggressive forms of antisocial behavior may be relevant to understanding the mechanisms of cognitive-behavioral therapy for conduct disorder and antisocial behavior.     

Comparison of two aggression inventories

Two recently developed questionnaire measures of aggression, the Aggression Questionnaire [Buss and Perry (1992; Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 63:452–459]; and the Aggression Inventory [Gladue (1991a); Psychological Reports 68:675–684], were administered to a British sample (N=320) of men and women undergraduates. Both questionnaires contain subscales measuring physical and verbal aggression; the other scales of the Aggression Questionnaire measure anger and hostility, and those of the Aggression Inventory measure impulsiveness and avoidance of aggression. The factor structure of scales were assessed using confirmatory factor analysis. The interrelations of the subscales were calculated in both cases: anger was independently related to verbal and physical aggression and to hostility on the Aggression Questionnaire; impulsivity, and verbal and physical aggression were associated on the Aggression Inventory. Sex differences were largest on the two physical subscales, of lesser magnitude but still significantly different for the two verbal subscales, but absent for anger and hostility. This supports the hypothesis that sex differences in aggression are larger for more escalated forms of aggression. The physical and verbal subscales of the two questionnaires were each highly correlated with one another and the impulsive subscale of the Aggression Inventory highly correlated with the anger subscale of the Aggresion Questionnaire. Thus, two aggression questionnaires developed in the US not only produce similar associations between subscales and sex differences among a British undergraduate sample, but also show high correlations between their respective scales. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Beliefs about aggression in British students from individualist and collectivist cultures

This study assessed the hypothesis that people from an individualist culture (100 British Anglo‐Saxon students) would show higher instrumental (I) and lower expressive (E) beliefs about aggression than those from a collectivist culture (100 British Asian students). The hypothesis was not supported and, at an individual level, there was no association between cultural orientation and beliefs about aggression. Asians showed higher I beliefs about their aggression than did Anglo‐Saxons, and the typical sex differences in I and E beliefs were more pronounced in the Asian than the Anglo‐Saxon sample. The study also assessed the relationship between I and E beliefs and instrumental and expressive personality traits in the two cultures. Moderate associations were found between I and E beliefs and the corresponding instrumental and expressive personality traits, which were unrelated to measures of cultural orientation. These findings show that despite superficial similarities in measures of cultural orientation, beliefs about aggression, and gender stereotypic traits, they are relatively unrelated constructs. Aggr. Behav. 31:000–000, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Intent to harm or injure? Gender and the expression of anger

Gender differences in aggressive behaviour but not in anger suggest that women may express anger through behaviours that lack intent to harm or injure. Angry behaviours (injurious and noninjurious) were rated in terms of their likelihood of use when angry (N=888). Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a direct aggression factor and two further scales: explosive acts (e.g. throwing objects when alone) and defusing acts (e.g. talking to a third party). Men exceeded women on direct aggression and explosive acts, whereas women exceeded men on defusing acts. Expressive beliefs about aggression (as a loss of self-control) were higher among women and strongly associated with use of defusing acts and the avoidance of direct aggression. Instrumental beliefs about aggression (as a means of control over others) were higher among men and showed the opposite pattern of associations. We highlight the need for further work on actors' intention in relation to angry behaviours and the impact of context on these intentions.     

Individual differences in anger and displaced aggression: The role of metacognitive beliefs and anger rumination

Metacognitive model is a theoretical approach aimed to explain emotion dysregulation and others emotion-related issues, such anger, and aggressive behavior. From this model, people having higher maladaptive metacognitive beliefs (e.g., “I can't control my thoughts”) are more likely to activate and maintain anger rumination and, in turn, to experience higher levels of anger and to act aggressively. Preliminary evidence shows the role of metacognitive beliefs on anger rumination and anger levels, whereas no studies have examined its association with aggressive behavior. This study first examined the associations between metacognitive beliefs, anger rumination, anger levels, and the propensity to engage in displaced aggression, and second, the mediation role of anger rumination in the relations among metacognitive beliefs and anger and displaced aggression. Participants were 947 students and non-students from general population recruited in two different countries (Australia and Spain). Correlational analyses revealed a similar pattern of results in the Australian and Spanish sample, with participants having dysfunctional metacognitive beliefs also showing higher anger rumination, higher levels of anger and a higher tendency to act aggressively. Structural equation analyses revealed the associations of metacognitive beliefs with anger levels and displaced aggression was fully mediated by anger rumination in both samples. These results suggest that metacognitive beliefs should be considered in comprehensive models and in the therapy of anger problems and aggression.     

Direct and indirect relationships among posttraumatic stress disorder,depression, hostility,anger, and verbal and physical aggression in returning veterans

Hostility, anger, and aggression are conceptually related but unique constructs found to occur more often among veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than among civilians or veterans without PTSD. However, the pathways between PTSD, depression, hostility, anger, and aggression have not been comprehensively characterized. Therefore, drawing on a sample of returning Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom combat veterans ( N = 175; 95% male; mean age 30 years), this study sought to examine the direct and indirect relationships among PTSD, depression, hostility, anger, and four types of aggression: verbal, and physical toward self, others, and objects. Functional modeling of direct effects was done using multiple least-squares regression and bootstrapped mediation analyses were carried out to test indirect effects. Results indicate that PTSD is not the overall direct contributor to different forms of aggression, supporting the mediating role of depression and trait anger. Depression symptoms explain part of the relationships between PTSD and verbal aggression, physical aggression toward objects, and physical aggression toward self and trait anger explains part of the relationships between PTSD and verbal aggression, physical aggression toward objects, and physical aggression toward others. Our findings support the importance of assessing for anger, depression, and different types of aggression among veterans presenting for PTSD treatment to develop individualized treatment plans that may benefit from early incorporation of interventions.     

Do personality characteristics and beliefs predict intra‐group bullying between prisoners?

This study assesses how beliefs about aggression and personality can predict engagement in intra‐group bullying among prisoners. A sample of 213 adult male prisoners completed the DIPC‐SCALED (bullying behavior), the EXPAGG (beliefs toward aggression), and the IPIP (a five‐factor measure of personality). It was predicted that bullies would hold greater instrumental beliefs supporting the use of aggression than the other categories, with perpetrators reporting lower scores on agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience, and higher scores on neuroticism (i.e. low scores on emotional stability) than the remaining sample. Bullies and bully‐victims endorsed greater instrumental aggressive beliefs than the victim category. Only one perpetrator group, bullies were predicted by reduced levels of agreeableness and increased levels of neuroticism, whereas bully/victims were predicted by decreased levels of neuroticism. Limitations of this study and directions for future research are discussed. Aggr. Behav. 36:261–270, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Reason to Believe: Representations of Aggression as Phenomenological Read-Out

Men tend to view their own aggression as an instrumental act aimed at imposing control, whereas women tend to view theirs as an expressive act resulting from a loss of self-control. These interpretations have been called social representations based on their presumed social origins and mode of transmission. However, if women’s self-control is generally higher than men’s, they would be expected to behave aggressively only infrequently and at higher levels of provocation. Aggression would be experienced phenomenologically as a loss of self-control. In Study 1, a student sample, men scored higher than women on instrumental beliefs, impulsivity, and risk seeking. As predicted, instrumental beliefs were associated with higher impulsive risk seeking and an expressive representation was positively associated with temper. In Study 2, an offender sample, there were no gender differences in instrumental beliefs, physical aggression, temper, carelessness, and present orientation. Instrumental beliefs were again associated with impulsive risk seeking and, to a lesser extent, temper. Expressive beliefs were again associated with temper and, to a lesser extent, present orientation. Physical aggression was associated with holding instrumental beliefs, impulsive risk seeking, and temper. The model is broadly supported and directions for future work are suggested.     

Preschoolers' aggression and parent-child conflict: a multiinformant and multimethod study

This multiinformant and multimethod study (N=47) investigated the link between the parent-child relationship system and the display of physical and relational aggression with peers at school during early childhood. Children (mean age=43.54 months, SD=8.02) were observed (80min/child) during free play, and parents and teachers were asked to complete several standard measures. Intercorrelations between aggression subtypes revealed moderate to high levels of correlation for parents and teachers and no significant association for observations of physical and relational aggression. Interinformant agreement was examined, and teachers and parents were found to significantly agree for both physical and relational aggression, and teachers and observers also significantly agreed for both subtypes of aggression. Results of regression analyses suggest that parent-child conflict was uniquely associated with relational aggression among peers when controlling for physical aggression and gender. Ways in which these findings build on the extant literature are discussed.     

Distinguishing among nondirect forms of aggression

This study explored the relationships and differences among two measures of indirect aggression [Bjorkqvist et al., 1994; Richardson and Green, 1997] and one of relational aggression [Crick and Grotpeter, 1995]. Over 300 students (mean age 22.8 years; 61.5% female) from two colleges in the Southeastern United States completed measures of indirect and relational aggression and related constructs (e.g., empathy, anger expression, direct aggression). Although there were subtle differences among the three measures with regard to their relationships with associated variables, overall the patterns of relationships were similar as well as distinct from the pattern for direct aggression. Factor analysis of scores for measures of aggression revealed that the indirect and relational measures composed a single factor of nondirect aggression, separate from direct aggression. Further factor analysis of all unique items from the nondirect scales found the overall construct of nondirect aggression to comprise six distinct factors. Implications for applications and further research are discussed.     

The personality basis of aggression: The mediating role of anger and the moderating role of emotional intelligence

High neuroticism and low agreeableness have been found to predict higher levels of aggression through an increase of negative emotions such as anger. However, previous research has only investigated these indirect associations for physical aggression, whereas evidence for such indirect effects on other types of aggression (i.e., verbal or indirect aggression) is currently lacking. Moreover, no previous work has investigated the moderating role of Ability Emotional Intelligence (AEI), which may buffer against the effects of anger on aggression. The present study (N = 665) directly addresses these gaps in the literature. The results demonstrate that high neuroticism and low agreeableness were indirectly related to higher levels of physical, verbal, and indirect aggression via increased chronic accessibility to anger. Importantly however, the associations with physical aggression were significantly weaker for those higher (vs. lower) on AEI, confirming the buffering role of AEI. We discuss the implications of our findings for theoretical frameworks aiming to understand and reduce aggression and violent behavior.     

Children’s competitive peer aggression during reward and punishment

Behavior‐disordered children (N = 65) competed with a presumed unknown peer on consecutive administrations of an analogue aggression task of instrumental aggression (blocking the opponent’s game) and hostile aggression (sending the opponent a noise). The first administration as a reward‐only, nonpunishment condition. The second administration contained both reward and punishment conditions. Results indicated clear differences on aggressive responding during conditions of reward and punishment. Significant correlations were found between instrumental aggression during reward across the two administrations, whereas correlations between aggression during reward and aggression during punishment were nonsignificant. Teacher ratings of Covert‐Proactive Aggression correlated with analogue task instrumental aggression but not with hostile aggression on both administrations. Aggression during punishment was significantly correlated with Continuous Performance Test inattention and impulsivity scores, suggesting that impulsivity and inattention may play an important role in children’s ability to inhibit aggression during cues for punishment. These data indicate the utility of a laboratory analogue procedure to assess conditions associated with childhood aggression and to further our understanding of childhood aggression subtypes. Aggr. Behav. 27:1–13, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

The influence of just-world beliefs on driving anger and aggressive driving intentions

Decades of research demonstrate that the extent to which one believes the world is just can have important interpersonal consequences. Unfortunately, most of the commonly studied consequences are negative in nature. Guided by previous research demonstrating the buffering effect of just‐world beliefs and anger, the present research explores how belief in a just world (BJW) may mitigate anger in the domain of driving anger and examines the limiting conditions of this effect. Study 1 demonstrated the expected negative relation between common measures of BJW and anger expression in a driving context. Study 2 found that the buffering effects of just‐world beliefs and driver aggression were greater when BJW was violated (vs. not). Study 3 replicated the effects on aggression and anger and established a mediational role of anger on the buffering effects of just‐world beliefs on thoughts and driver aggression. Aggr. Behav. 38:389‐402, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Sex differences in social representations of aggression: Men justify,women excuse?

Women tend to hold an expressive social representation of aggression (as a loss of self‐control) while men tend to hold an instrumental representation (as a means of imposing control over others). Because expressive beliefs correspond to excuses and instrumental beliefs to justifications, it may be a sex difference in moral acceptability of aggression that informs social representation. Participants completed the Expagg questionnaire with reference to an episode of same‐sex or cross‐sex physical aggression and rated the moral acceptability of their behaviour. Women scored higher on Expagg (specifically lower than men on the instrumental scale) but there was no effect of target sex or participant‐by‐target interaction. Contrary to expectation, women rated their own aggression as more acceptable than did men and hence this could not explain their lower levels of instrumentality relative to men. Aggr. Behav. 29:128–133, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

教养方式、气质对青少年攻击的影响：独特、差别与中介效应检验

运用“多前因变量－多结果变量”框架, 探讨教养方式、气质对青少年直接和间接攻击有无独特效应与差别效应, 以及规范信念(认为攻击他人是正确和可接受的)在其中的中介作用。660名青少年(平均年龄14.14岁, 女生364人)报告了教养方式、气质特征、攻击信念和攻击行为的情况。多重和多元回归分析表明：(1)教养方式(权威、专制、纵容)对直接攻击独特效应不显著, 气质(意志控制、愤怒挫折、感觉寻求)对直接攻击有独特效应; 教养方式(权威、专制、纵容)和气质(意志控制、感觉寻求)对间接攻击有独特效应。(2)教养方式(权威、专制、纵容)与直接攻击的联系显著弱于其与间接攻击的联系, 而气质(愤怒挫折、感觉寻求)与直接攻击的联系则显著强于其与间接攻击的联系。(3)两类规范信念与两类攻击具有不完全的特异性联系, 而且直接规范在气质(意志控制、感觉寻求)与两类攻击之间具有中介作用, 间接规范在教养方式(权威)与间接攻击、气质(愤怒挫折)与两类攻击之间具有中介作用。因此, 教养方式和气质对不同形式攻击行为的影响不同, 且这种影响可以部分地由规范信念加以解释。     

Metacognition,rumination and road rage: An examination of driver anger progression and expression in Australia

Road rage is a serious issue impacting road safety on Australian roads. This study investigated the psychological antecedents involved in aggressive driver behaviours. Specifically, the study investigated the relationships between metacognitive beliefs, anger rumination, trait driver anger, and driver aggression; and examined the extent of aggressive behaviours in a sample of Australian drivers (N = 246). An inspection of cross-tabulations indicated that nearly all drivers engaged in verbal driver aggression (94%), approximately half of the drivers engaged in vehicle aggression (53%), and approximately a quarter of the drivers engaged in physical aggression (27%). Driver aggression was more commonly reported from males, open licensed, and middle-aged drivers. Structural path analysis indicated that there was a hierarchical series of relationships present, in that metacognitive beliefs influenced cognitive constructs such as anger rumination and constructive expression. Additionally, such factors were shown to more prominently influence trait driver anger, and the degree to which it was expressed. Bivariate correlations also demonstrated that the relationships carried forward to more specific dimensions of anger rumination and driver aggression styles. The findings of this study may assist to identify the origins of psychological mechanisms involved with anger progression and expression and inform potential interventions for aggressive driving behaviours.