Premium
Gender of Subject and Target as Mediators of Aggression 1
Author(s) -
Harris Mary B.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-1816.1994.tb00593.x
Subject(s) - aggression , psychology , anger , situational ethics , feeling , context (archaeology) , social psychology , developmental psychology , romance , clinical psychology , paleontology , psychoanalysis , biology
The effects of gender of the subject and the target of aggression were studied by examining responses of 414 undergraduates to four anger‐inducing scenarios. As predicted, in the three scenarios not involving dating, males tended to be more aggressive and to expect more approval of aggression from their friends than did females; more aggression was directed against a male, and friends approved more of aggression against a male than a female target. Also as predicted, in the scenario involving a romantic partner, females were more aggressive than males and expected more approval for aggression from friends; males were more likely than females to feel guilty, apologize, and speak politely to their dates. The results suggest that the relationship between gender and aggression is influenced by situational context, friends' anticipated reactions, feelings of guilt, and expectancies of successful outcomes.