Do TV and video games affect young people’s behaviour?

TOPIC C - AGGRESSION

Do TV and video games affect young people’s behaviour?

BIOLOGICAL CAUSES OF AGGRESSION Role of the brain

Limbic system Set of brain structures in the middle of the brain Responsible for emotions needed for survival

such as fear and aggression.Amygdala

Structure in the brain that recognises emotion, and created emotional response.

Also produces aggression – fight or flight response.

HORMONES AND AGGRESSION Testosterone

Male sex hormone (chemicals that are produced in the body that send messages to other parts of the body)

Secreted by the adrenal glands (kidneys) and testes, and is needed to produce sperm, male reproductive organs, and male features such as deepening of the voice.

Relationship between high levels of testosterone in humans and increased aggression.

If animals are castrated (remove the testes) their level of aggression drops.

SOCIAL EXPLANATIONS Social Learning Theory

Observational learning Watching others, then copying their behaviour.

Role models Children are more likely to model a person who is

popular, attractive, a similar age or the same gender to us.

Vicarious learning We are more likely to copy someone’s behaviour if there

is a reward at the end. If someone does something and gets a reward, we will want to copy to get the reward.

STUDIES Ramirez et al (2001)

How aggression differs between culturesLooked at Spanish and Japanese students Japanese showed more physical aggressionSpanish showed more verbal aggression

and angerThe findings go against the stereotypes of

these 2 cultures (Spanish aggressive, Japanese calm)

Anderson and Dill (2000) Looked at how video games affect aggression in

children The most aggression was shown by people playing

the violent video game Wolfenstein 3D. Women were more aggressive than men. The researchers believed it made them think in an

aggressive way

Charlton et al (2000) Looking at the effects of television being introduced

in an isolated island (St Helena) No significant increase in aggression after the

introduction of TV. This is because of the close-knit community, and

parental control over behaviour.

Williams et al (1981)Same as Charlton et al, but in British Colombia

(less isolated)Children were twice as aggressive after TV was

introduced IQ dropped and children became less creative,

reduced time spent on leisure activitiesLarger area, people didn’t really know each

other.

CONTENT ANALYSIS Research method using a tally chart Participants are observed, and the

number of times a behaviour occurs is marked down in a tally chart.

Can be unreliable as each researcher has different views. E.g. If they were looking for aggression in the playground and a boy pushes someone else, one researcher might think it aggressive and give a tally, whereas another might think it playful and not give a tally.

ETHICS – 6 ETHICAL GUIDELINES1. Protection of participants – Participants should not

experience psychological or physical harm.2. Consent – Researchers should try to fully inform the

participants of the study so that they may give informed consent.

3. Right to withdraw – Participants should be able to pull out of the study at any point.

4. Deception – Participants should not be lied to unless absolutely necessary (e.g. If telling the truth may affect the outcome of the study).

5. Debrief – Participants should be told the real aim of the study when it is over (if not done so already). However, a debrief is not an excuse for deception.

6. Competence – A researcher must be qualified and capable enough to conduct the study.

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST They work for the local authority responsible

for state schools, independent schools, or can be self-employed.

Role Carry out assessments of children with special

needs. Give support and advice to teachers, SENCOs,

parents, children, support staff etc. Carry out other assessments such as IQ tests,

tests for numeracy, literacy, dyslexia. Planning interventions. Training and research.

Skills CommunicationEmpathy (putting yourself in others shoes)Non-judgementalListening skills

QualificationsDegree in psychology (recognised by the

BPS)Experience involving education3 year doctorate in educational psychologyChartered status (don’t have to have) is a

sign of competence – you have to have satisfied all the requirements of the BPS.

ANGER MANAGEMENT Educational psychologists can help people with

anger management problems. Start off by observing the child to see what

triggers the behaviour and to look for patterns. The Ed Psych gathers as much info as possible

about what happens in the classroom and whether the behaviour is displayed at home.

Talks to the child and the teacher. Helps the teacher (and the child) to identify

when an incident is going to happen, so that the teacher may be able to prevent it from happening by changing their behaviour.

Teach child techniques to help them calm down.

CENSORSHIP AND 9PM WATERSHED Censorship means preventing the

circulation of information. Info is censored if it is considered to be

harmful, sensitive or private to others.E.g. Film certification

The 9pm watershed means that some programmes have to be shown after 9pm.To protect children from viewing unsuitable

material such as acts of sex and/or violence.

FOR: Protects children from viewing things they are not

ready for (based on the idea that children imitate role models and are likely to copy what they see in films or on television).

Vast majority of people are in favour of the watershed.

AGAINST: Restricts people’s freedom to choose what they

want to watch. Restricts freedom of speech which is a central

feature of society in the UK. Authoritarian (style of government where society’s

members have little input and have to do as the government says) and paternalistic (decisions by government are made for the good of everyone else) types of government are more likely to use censorship – another way of controlling society.

TOPIC D –PHOBIAS

Why do we have phobias?

CLASSICAL CONDITIONING A way that animals and humans can learn to link two

things together. Pavlov’s dog (learned to link a bell with food).

Showed the dog food = dog salivated Rang bell (no food) = no reaction Showed food and rang bell = salivated Repeated many times until finally... Rang bell (no food) = salivated

If a real fear is triggered by something when a harmless stimulus is present, an association can be made between the two things i.e. A phobia can be learned. E.g. A little girl falls over in the sea and scrapes her leg.

Her dad picks her up but she is wet and frightened. She may now have associated water with fear and won’t have a bath when at home.

SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY Gaining new behaviours by watching and

imitating a role model. If the role model is rewarded, then the observer is

more likely to imitate them – vicarious reinforcement.

Phobias could run in families as the children could be observing and imitating their parents’ fears.

Mineka et al (1984) found that lab monkeys that had grown up in the wild were afraid of snakes whereas those that were born in captivity weren’t. The wild-born monkeys were learning their behaviour

from observing adults in the wild.

THEORY OF PREPAREDNESS (BIOLOGICAL THEORY) Animals and people evolved to have phobias

as they could help them to survive. E.g. 2 animals in a forest fire. One is scared and

runs away (survives) and one shows no fear and sticks its nose in the flames (dies).

We learn links between some things more easily than others, as evolution has ‘prepared’ us to learn about things that are threatening.

Explains why some phobias are more common than others. E.g. More likely to be scared of snakes (could have been a predator) than clothes.

QUESTIONNAIRES Set of questions that are written down and given

to participants to answer. 3 types of questions:

Closed questions – Have a fixed number of possible answers, and participants often just tick a box. E.g. Are you afraid of spiders Yes/No

Open questions – More detailed answers, participants are asked for a description. E.g. How do you feel when you see a spider?

Rank-style questions – Asks the participant to say how much ‘more’ or ‘less’ things are. E.g. Give each animal a number from 1 (most scary) to 4 (least scary): Cat, Fish, Spider, Hamster.

Likert style questions are a type of rank question that gives a statement and you have to say whether you agree/disagree.

ETHICAL ISSUES WITH ANIMALS Social isolation

Making social animals (dogs, rate, monkeys) be on their own may cause them distress, so time kept alone should be kept to a minimum.

Number of animals Need to use only as few animals as they can.

Choice of species Different species find different things distressing.

E.g. A social animal will find social isolation more distressing than an animal that lives alone.

Causing pain and fear When absolutely essential, only cause minimum

pain and fear possible.

USING ANIMALS FOR EXPERIMENTS Strengths

Humans and animals are similar Animal behaviour is often simpler than human

behaviour Can use animals for experiments involving

deprivation as humans are not likely to volunteer.

Interesting to find out about animals behaviour, regardless of whether it is useful for understanding people.

Weaknesses Although humans and animals are similar, there

are important differences, e.g. humans have bigger brains and are more complex.

STUDIES Jones (1924) – curing a boy’s phobia

He looked at whether a phobia in a little boy could be deconditioned and whether it could generalise to other objects.

Found that both classical conditioning and social learning helped to decondition Peter.

Reduced generalised fears and helped peter cope with new animals.

Bennett-Levy and Marteau (1984) They looked at whether we are more afraid of

animals that move quickly, move suddenly or look very different from people.

The features of ugliness, sliminess, speediness and sudden movements all make animals more frightening.

Heinrichs et al (2005)Cultural differences in fears.Collectivist cultures (encourages group

independence, cooperation and group identity e.g. Japan) show greater social anxiety and fear of blushing than individualistic cultures (encourages independence, personal achievement, competition and individuality e.g. USA).

This is because if people in collectivist countries break a social norm, they will experience greater punishment (as the behaviour of individuals affects the whole group) which in turn makes them more anxious.

TREATING PHOBIAS Flooding

Extreme therapy based on classical conditioning. Involves confronting your fear directly, as being near

the thing you are scared of can help you overcome it. Causes anxiety to begin with, and the participant

eventually starts to calm down. Participants learn to associate their fear or phobia with this feeling of relaxation.

Not very ethical. Systematic desensitisation

Similar to flooding, but less stressful. Participant is still exposed to their fear, but it is done

in a more gradual way. E.g. If someone is scared of spiders, they might first be

exposed to a picture of a spider, then a video, then a toy spider, then a real spider (small, then a tarantula.

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST Role

Works with people who have mental health problems e.g. Anxiety, depression, behavioural problems.

Works with people who are stressed and distressed.

Mood disorders, fears, phobias, problems in coping with a disability.

Makes an assessment of a client’s needs, plans interventions (putting forward a solution), trains others and research.

Most work for the NHS or private practises.

QualificationsDegree in psychology recognised by the

BPS.Relevant work experience.3 year full time doctorate course in clinical

psychology Skills

Be able to listen, understand and reflect on the situation of others.

Help with solutions.Understanding diversity.Learning to ask open questions.

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PHOBIAS Hypnotherapy

Helping the client to get into a relaxed state, called an altered state of awareness.

In this state, they are not concerned by everyday problems but can instead have a heightened sense of awareness where they can accept suggestions from the hypnotherapist about overcoming the phobia.

CBT Cognitive behavioural therapy. Involves identifying negative automatic thoughts and

trying to replace them with less negative thoughts. Exposure-based CBT involves changing the client’s

thinking patterns as well as lowering the fear response to the situations that are feared.

TOPIC E - CRIMINOLOGY

Are criminals born or made?

BIOLOGICAL CAUSES OF CRIMINALITY Genetics

More likely to be a criminal if your parents are criminal.

Adoption studies – different environment, but still likely to be a criminal if their natural parents are criminal.

Twin studies – exactly the same genes.XYY (male) chromosome abnormality –

causes increased aggression, taller, learning difficulties.

SOCIAL CAUSES OF CRIMINALITY Family patterns

If parents are divorced, more likely to have criminal tendencies due to factors such as money difficulties, moving house, arguments in the home etc.

If children are separated from their main caregiver before the age of 2 years old, this can cause problems in later life – maternal deprivation.

Family size is also an important factor. More than 6 children in a family can result in children being more likely to be criminals.

Childrearing strategiesPower assertion includes hitting, shouting at

children, humiliating them, grabbing them etc. Can lead to aggression in children.

Love withdrawal is when parents put conditions on their love, they don’t love their children when they have done something bad. Results in children being confused about their identity, unsure as to whether they are loved or not.

Induction is where parents explain to their child what they have done wrong and allow them to think about the consequences. Children can then make the right decision the next time.

Self-fulfilling prophecyThis is where a behaviour that is expected of

someone will come true. People conform to the behaviour that is expected

of them.E.g. If a teacher expects a pupil to do badly in a

test, they will not offer them help and focus on others, resulting in the pupil doing badly in the test (the prediction has come true).

STUDIES Theilgaard (1984)

Study on XYY chromosome abnormality No conclusive evidence to suggest that XYY

gene causes criminality Sigall and Ostrove

Looked at effect of attractiveness on jury decision-making.

Found that unattractive people are more likely to be sent to prison for burglary than attractive people.

Attractive people are more likely to be sent to prison for fraud than unattractive people (higher class crime)

Madon et al.Self-fulfilling prophecy and drinkingFound that if parents expected children to

drink large amounts, a year later they would have conformed to the expectations even if they didn’t drink as much before.

OFFENDER PROFILING A criminal profile is a prediction of what

a criminal is like using evidence and psychology.Can include age, race, sex, marital status,

occupation, area lived in, previous criminal activity.

David Canter was a famous forensic psychologist who produced profiles of offenders. The profile of John Duffy was very close to what they offender was actually like.

FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST The job

Works in the courts to uncover psychological issues Sets up treatment programmes Making offender profiles Working with prisoners to assess the threat to staff etc.

Qualifications Degree in psychology Work experience Masters in Forensic Psychology (step 1 of the Diploma in Forensic

Psychology) 2 years supervised practise (step 2)

Skills Communication Understand body language Problem-solving skills

Chartered status Satisfied all the requirements of the British Psychological Society, and

have sufficient qualifications to be called a ‘psychologist’.

TREATMENT OF OFFENDERS Personal Construct Therapy

A therapy where someone finds their own way of looking at people (their personal constructs) and uses their constructs to see how they judge the people they know.

Treating drug abuse Prescribing substitute drugs Making sure they have adequate housing and funding to

prevent them turning back to drugs. Treating sexual offenders

Medication to reduce sex drive Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) involves helping

someone to change how they think about something and therefore behave differently. Changing the negative thoughts to positive.

DEFENDANT CHARACTERISTICS Attractiveness Accent

If a defendant is well-spoken, we are less likely to find them guilty of burglary.

A defendant with a strong regional or ‘rough’ accent (e.g. Geordie, Scouser etc) may be more likely to commit a crime.

Race If we have a stereotypical view of a black

man as more likely to commit a crime, we are more likely to find them guilty.