Editing Aggression (section)

===Culture===
{{copy edit|section|for=proper paragraphing. Excessively long, run-on paragraphs need to be split into multiple paragraphs of moderate length|date=September 2024}}
Culture is one factor that plays a role in aggression. [[Tribal]] or [[band society|band]] societies existing before or outside of modern [[state (polity)|states]] have sometimes been depicted as peaceful '[[noble savage]]s'. The [[ǃKung people]] were described as 'The Harmless People' in a popular work by [[Elizabeth Marshall Thomas]] in 1958,<ref>Thomas, E.M. (1958). ''[https://books.google.com/books/about/The_harmless_people.html?id=n_lOAAAAMAAJ The harmless people]''. New York: Vintage Books.{{page needed|date=February 2017}}</ref> while Lawrence Keeley's 1996 [[War Before Civilization]] suggested that regular [[warfare]] without modern technology was conducted by most groups throughout human history, including most [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]] tribes.<ref>Keeley, L.H. (1996). ''[[War Before Civilization]]: The myth of the peaceful savage''. New York: Oxford University Press.</ref> Studies of [[hunter-gatherers]] show a range of different societies. In general, aggression, conflict and violence sometimes occur, but direct confrontation is generally avoided and conflict is socially managed by a variety of verbal and non-verbal methods. Different rates of aggression or violence, currently or in the past, within or between groups, have been linked to the structuring of societies and environmental conditions influencing factors such as [[resource]] or [[property]] acquisition, [[Land (economics)|land]] and [[List of subsistence techniques|subsistence]] techniques, and [[population change]].<ref>Lomas, W. (2009) [http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1205&context=totem Conflict, Violence, and Conflict Resolution in Hunting and Gathering Societies] Totem: The University of Western Ontario Journal of Anthropology, Volume 17, Issue 1, Article 13</ref>

American psychologist [[Peter Gray (psychologist)|Peter Gray]] hypothesizes that band hunter-gatherer societies are able to reduce aggression while maintaining relatively peaceful, [[egalitarian]] relations between members through various methods, such as fostering a [[playful]] spirit in all areas of life, the use of humor to counter the tendency of any one person to dominate the group, and non-coercive or "indulgent" child-rearing practices. Gray likens hunter-gatherer bands to social play groups, while stressing that such play is not frivolous or even easy at all times.<ref name=PlayFoundation>{{cite journal |author=Gray, Peter |date=Spring 2009 |title=Play as a Foundation for Hunter-Gatherer Social Existence |journal=American Journal of Play |volume=1 |issue=4 |pages=476–522 |url=http://www.journalofplay.org/sites/www.journalofplay.org/files/pdf-articles/1-4-article-hunter-gatherer-social-existence.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131024201853/http://www.journalofplay.org/sites/www.journalofplay.org/files/pdf-articles/1-4-article-hunter-gatherer-social-existence.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 October 2013 }}</ref> According to Gray, "Social play—that is, play involving more than one player—is necessarily egalitarian. It always requires a suspension of aggression and dominance along with a heightened sensitivity to the needs and desires of the other players".<ref>{{cite web |author=Gray, Peter |date=16 May 2011 |title=How Hunter-Gatherers Maintained Their Egalitarian Ways |website=Psychology Today |url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/201105/how-hunter-gatherers-maintained-their-egalitarian-ways}}</ref>

Joan Durrant at the [[University of Manitoba]] writes that a number of studies have found [[physical punishment]] to be associated with "higher levels of aggression against parents, siblings, peers and spouses", even when controlling for other factors.<ref name=Lessons>{{cite journal |doi=10.1503/cmaj.101314 |pmid=22311946 |pmc=3447048 |title=Physical punishment of children: Lessons from 20 years of research |journal=Canadian Medical Association Journal |volume=184 |issue=12 |pages=1373–7 |year=2012 |last1=Durrant |first1=J. |last2=Ensom |first2=R. }}</ref>

According to [[Elizabeth Gershoff]] at the [[University of Texas at Austin]], the more that children are physically punished, the more likely they are as adults to act violently towards family members, including intimate partners.<ref>{{cite book |author=Gershoff, E.T. |date=2008 |title=Report on Physical Punishment in the United States: What Research Tells Us About Its Effects on Children |location=Columbus, OH |publisher=Center for Effective Discipline |page=16 |url=http://www.phoenixchildrens.org/sites/default/files/PDFs/principles_and_practices-of_effective_discipline.pdf |access-date=15 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127213730/http://www.phoenixchildrens.org/sites/default/files/PDFs/principles_and_practices-of_effective_discipline.pdf |archive-date=27 January 2016 |url-status=dead  }}</ref>

In countries where physical punishment of children is perceived as being more culturally accepted, it is less strongly associated with increased aggression; however, physical punishment has been found to predict some increase in child aggression regardless of culture.<ref name=SocialSciences>[http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3045300461.html "Corporal Punishment"] (2008). ''International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences''.</ref> While these associations do not prove [[causality]], a number of [[longitudinal study|longitudinal studies]] suggest that the experience of physical punishment has a direct causal effect on later aggressive behaviors.<ref name=Lessons/> In examining several longitudinal studies that investigated the path from disciplinary [[spanking]] to aggression in children from preschool age through adolescence, Gershoff concluded: "Spanking consistently predicted increases in children's aggression over time, regardless of how aggressive children were when the spanking occurred".<ref name=Development>{{cite journal |doi=10.1111/cdep.12038 |pmid=24039629 |pmc=3768154 |title=Spanking and Child Development: We Know Enough Now to Stop Hitting Our Children |journal=Child Development Perspectives |volume=7 |issue=3 |pages=133–137 |year=2013 |last1=Gershoff |first1=Elizabeth T. }}</ref>

Similar results were found by Catherine Taylor at [[Tulane University]] in 2010.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1542/peds.2009-2678 |pmid=20385647 |pmc=5094178 |title=Mothers' Spanking of 3-Year-Old Children and Subsequent Risk of Children's Aggressive Behavior |journal=Pediatrics |volume=125 |issue=5 |pages=e1057–65 |year=2010 |last1=Taylor |first1=C. A. |last2=Manganello |first2=J. A. |last3=Lee |first3=S. J. |last4=Rice |first4=J. C. }}</ref> Family violence researcher [[Murray A. Straus]] argues, "There are many reasons this evidence has been ignored. One of the most important is the belief that spanking is more effective than nonviolent discipline and is, therefore, sometimes necessary, despite the risk of harmful side effects".<ref>
{{cite book |author1=Straus, Murray A. |author2=Douglas, Emily M. |author3=Madeiros, Rose Ann |title=The Primordial Violence: Spanking Children, Psychological Development, Violence, and Crime |location=New York |publisher=Routledge |date=2013 |page=81|isbn=978-1-84872-953-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gZTCAAAAQBAJ}}</ref>

Analyzing aggression culturally or politically is complicated by the fact that the [[labeling theory|label]] 'aggressive' can itself be used as a way of asserting a judgement from a particular point of view.{{according to whom |date=December 2015}} Whether a [[coercive]] or violent method of social control is perceived as aggression&nbsp;– or as legitimate versus illegitimate aggression&nbsp;– depends on the position of the relevant parties in relation to the social order of their culture. This in turn can relate to factors such as: norms for coordinating actions and dividing resources; what is considered self-defense or provocation; attitudes towards 'outsiders', attitudes towards specific groups such as women, disabled people or those with lower status; the availability of alternative conflict resolution strategies; [[trade]] interdependence and [[collective security]] pacts; fears and impulses; and ultimate goals regarding material and social outcomes.<ref name="Bond04">Bond, MH. (2004) 'Aggression and culture', in [https://books.google.com/books?id=UriYBuiH_FkC Encyclopedia of applied psychology], Volume 1.</ref>

[[Cross-cultural]] research has found differences in attitudes towards aggression in different cultures. In one questionnaire study of university students, in addition to men overall justifying some types of aggression more than women, United States respondents justified defensive physical aggression more readily than Japanese or Spanish respondents, whereas Japanese students preferred direct verbal aggression (but not indirect) more than their American and Spanish counterparts.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1002/(SICI)1098-2337(1999)25:3<185::AID-AB3>3.0.CO;2-K |title=Justification of interpersonal aggression in Japanese, American, and Spanish students |journal=Aggressive Behavior |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=185–95 |year=1999 |last1=Fujihara |first1=Takehiro |last2=Kohyama |first2=Takaya |last3=Andreu |first3=J. Manuel |last4=Ramirez |first4=J. Martin |s2cid=145166936 }}</ref>

Within American culture, [[Southern United States|southern]] men were shown in a study on university students to be more affected and to respond more aggressively than northerners when randomly insulted after being bumped into, which was theoretically related to a traditional [[Culture of honor (Southern United States)|culture of honor in the Southern United States]], or "[[Face (sociological concept)|saving face]]."<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1037/0022-3514.70.5.945 |pmid=8656339 |title=Insult, aggression, and the southern culture of honor: An "experimental ethnography." |journal=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology |volume=70 |issue=5 |pages=945–59 |year=1996 |last1=Cohen |first1=Dov |last2=Nisbett |first2=Richard E. |last3=Bowdle |first3=Brian F. |last4=Schwarz |first4=Norbert |hdl=2027.42/92155 |url=https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/92155/1/InsultAggressionAndTheSouthernCulture.pdf |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Other cultural themes sometimes applied to the study of aggression include [[individualistic]] versus [[Collectivism and individualism|collectivist]] styles, which may relate, for example, to whether disputes are responded to with open competition or by accommodating and [[Conflict avoidance|avoiding conflicts]].

In a study including 62 countries school principals reported aggressive student behavior more often the more individualist, and hence less collectivist, their country's culture.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1002/ab.21472 |pmid=23494751 |title=The Relationship Between Cultural Individualism-Collectivism and Student Aggression Across 62 Countries |journal=Aggressive Behavior |volume=39 |issue=3 |pages=182–200 |year=2013 |last1=Bergmüller |first1=Silvia }}</ref> Other comparisons made in relation to aggression or war include [[democracy|democratic]] versus [[authoritarianism|authoritarian]] [[political systems]] and [[egalitarian]] versus [[Social stratification|stratified]] societies.<ref name="Bond04" />

The [[economic system]] known as [[capitalism]] has been viewed by some as reliant on the [[lever]]aging of human competitiveness and aggression in pursuit of resources and trade, which has been considered in both positive and negative terms.<ref>Nolan, P. (2007) [https://books.google.com/books/about/Capitalism_and_freedom.html?id=pg6h0_7xRnkC Capitalism and freedom: the contradictory character of globalisation] From page 2. Anthem Studies in Development and Globalization, Anthem Press</ref> Attitudes about the social acceptability of particular acts or targets of aggression are also important factors. This can be highly controversial, as for example in disputes between religions or nation states, for example in regard to the [[Arab–Israeli conflict]].<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/j.ijintrel.2004.03.004 |title=Aggression and violence among Jewish and Arab Youth in Israel |journal=International Journal of Intercultural Relations |volume=28 |issue=2 |pages=93–109 |year=2004 |last1=Sherer |first1=Moshe |last2=Karnieli-Miller |first2=Orit }}</ref><ref name=amjad>{{cite journal |doi=10.1002/ab.20325 |pmid=19790255 |title=Identifying and changing the normative beliefs about aggression which lead young Muslim adults to join extremist anti-Semitic groups in Pakistan |journal=Aggressive Behavior |volume=35 |issue=6 |pages=514–9 |year=2009 |last1=Amjad |first1=Naumana |last2=Wood |first2=Alex M. |citeseerx=10.1.1.332.6476 }}</ref>

====Media====
{{Main|Media violence research}}
Some scholars believe that behaviors like aggression may be partially learned by watching and imitating people's behavior, while other researchers have concluded that the media may have some small effects on aggression.<ref>Akert, M. Robin, Aronson, E., and Wilson, D.T. "Social Psychology", 5th Edition. Pearson Education, Inc. 2005{{page needed|date=February 2017}}</ref> There is also research questioning this view.<ref>Freedman, J. (2002). ''[https://books.google.com/books/about/Media_violence_and_its_effect_on_aggress.html?id=GL9DMwoW2P8C Media violence and its effect on aggression: Assessing the scientific evidence]''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.</ref> For instance, a long-term outcome study of youth found no long-term relationship between playing violent video games and youth violence or bullying.<ref>Christopher J. Ferguson, (2010) "[http://www.tamiu.edu/~cferguson/Video%20Games%201%20Year.pdf Video Games and Youth Violence: A Prospective Analysis in Adolescents] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120525061300/http://www.tamiu.edu/~cferguson/Video%20Games%201%20Year.pdf |date=25 May 2012 }}", ''Journal of Youth and Adolescence''</ref>

One study suggested there is a smaller effect of violent video games on aggression than has been found with [[Research on the effects of violence in mass media|television violence]] on aggression. This effect is positively associated with type of game violence and [[Inverse relationship|negatively associated]] to time spent playing the games.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1093/hcr/27.3.409 |title=The effects of violent video games on aggression. A meta-analysis |journal=Human Communication Research |volume=27 |issue=3 |pages=409–31 |year=2001 |last1=Sherry |first1=J. |doi-broken-date=11 January 2025 |s2cid=6322160 }}</ref> The author concluded that insufficient evidence exists to link video game violence with aggression. However, another study suggested links to aggressive behavior.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1037/0022-3514.78.4.772 |pmid=10794380 |title=Video games and aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behavior in the laboratory and in life |journal=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology |volume=78 |issue=4 |pages=772–90 |year=2000 |last1=Anderson |first1=Craig A. |last2=Dill |first2=Karen E. |citeseerx=10.1.1.1006.1548 }}</ref>