Write 8 pages with APA style on Aggression and Violence. Social psychologists attribute the use of aggression and violence to the need for an individual to achieve a particular goal, to simply cause harm to another person, to assert dominance over others, to express possession over materials, and as reactions to emotions such as frustration, fear, and anger.
Aggressive behavior exhibited by numerous individuals has been noted by both social and evolutionary psychologists to have several roots ranging from genetics to learned acquisitions. Aggression is injurious, destructive, and hostile and can manifest in numerous different forms. Aggression can be passive, verbal, or hostile. It is worth noting that aggressive behavior can involve the act of depriving people of a need or refusing to perform an action that will intentionally result in emotionally or physically hurting someone (Berkowitz, 2003).
Aggression can be traced across different age groups, cultures, and genders. Evolutionary psychologists argue that aggression is an integral part of human survival and historically offered an evolutionary advantage to the reproduction of the human species. However, feelings of frustration or anger have also been noted to be some of the underlying causes of its manifestation in individuals (Anderson & Bushman, 2002).
Aggression and violence pose major problems for both societies as well as the criminal justice system due to their economic and social costs. Apart from causing physical injury, aggression and violence can cause psychological harm. In hospitals and prisons, aggression and violence contribute to the elimination of any sort of therapeutic environment in which prisoners and patients can be assisted to improve or change their attitudes and behavior. Aggression and violence are therefore detrimental to the wellbeing of both patients as well as prisoners.
Aggressive as well as violent acts and the likelihood of future violence are of particular concern for those who work the mental health industry in both hospitals and prisons.
