testosterone as a hormonal mechanism
- Created by: Aimee W x
- Created on: 14-03-22 13:07
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- the role of testosterone as a hormonal mechanism
- attention has focussed on the androgen group of hormones (testosterone). it is produced mainly by the testes in males but can also occur in women.
- it is associated with the development of masculine features and been implicated in aggression due to it's action on brain areas involved in controlling aggression.
- "Basal Model Of Testosterone": it causes a change in a persons level of dominance. the more testosterone a person has, the more competitive and dominant they will become.
- therefore a man with more testosterone is more likely to be involved in aggressive behaviour as it expresses their dominance.
- support for the role of testosterone comes from researchers. they measure the levl of testosterone in salivia of criminals. found those with high levels had a history of primarily violent crimes, whereas those with low levels had committed non-violent crime. this suggests testosterone levels may have caused this difference in aggression
- issues with research is that it may suffer gender bias. means most studies have focussed on males and largely ignored the different influence testosterone may have in females. researchers found testosterone could make women act nicer rather than aggressively, dependent on situation. this suggests rather than directly causing aggression, it promotes status seeking behaviours that increase dominance.
- furthermore, neural and hormonal explanations may ignore evidence that suggests aggression may be learned through the environment.
- EG: bandura found children were more likely to be aggressive towards Bobo doll when they had observed an adult acting aggressively and learned to imitate it.
- this is a problem as suggests environmental and social learning may at least play a part in aggression that is not considered by the explanation
- EG: bandura found children were more likely to be aggressive towards Bobo doll when they had observed an adult acting aggressively and learned to imitate it.
- attention has focussed on the androgen group of hormones (testosterone). it is produced mainly by the testes in males but can also occur in women.
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