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Gender differences in laboratory aggression under response choice conditions
Author(s) -
Zeichner Amos,
Parrott Dominic J.,
Frey F. Charles
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
aggressive behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.223
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 1098-2337
pISSN - 0096-140X
DOI - 10.1002/ab.10030
Subject(s) - aggression , psychology , developmental psychology , shock (circulatory) , poison control , injury prevention , human factors and ergonomics , clinical psychology , social psychology , medicine , medical emergency
Eighty‐four undergraduate student volunteers were tested on the Response Choice Aggression Paradigm [Zeichner et al., 1999]. Men (n=43) and women (n=41) participants were provoked in a reaction time competition by receiving electric shocks and were allowed to respond to a confederate with similar shocks or to refrain from any retaliation. Results indicated that men administered more shocks, chose more intense shocks, and administered the highest available shock at a greater proportion relative to all their shock selections than did women. In contrast, women evinced a longer latency before becoming aggressive and initiated aggression at lower intensities than did men. Moreover, across shock trials, gender‐specific aggression patterns indicated that while men alternated response frequency, women gradually increased their response frequency to a peak close to the end of the task. The results confirm earlier findings of gender differences in aggression and offer new indices of aggression “flashpoint” as a step closer to understanding aggressive behavior in naturalistic circumstances. Aggr. Behav. 29:95–106, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.