Does Experience of Failure Decrease Executive, Regulatory Abilities and Increase Aggression?

Abstract

Recent advances in the study of affective-cognitive regulation of aggressive behavior suggest positive correlations between poor executive capacities (ECF) and dispositional negative reactivity (Posner & Rothbart, 2000). If the global assumption is correct what are the likely implications of predicted relation? The central issue in present research was to verify this assumption and examine how situational characteristics could alter executive performance in persons with Dysexecutive Syndrome (DES, Baddeley, 1998) and healthy adults (students, health workers) to explore some of the consequences of those modifications for aggressive tendencies. Precisely, we expected the positive correlations between poor executive performances and high aggressive tendencies at dispositional as well situational levels, except for health workers, given their professional duties.In order to assess cognitive capacities and dispositional as well as situational aggressive tendencies, during two studies (First study: N=60 students; Second study: N= 60 students, N= 24 patient with Dysexecutive Syndrome, N= 45 health care workers) right-handed French-speakers participants completed twice, during an initial phase of the study and one week after, a series of standard executive functions neuropsychological tests and aggression questionnaires. During second phase, participants executed a task introducing the experimental feedbacks (success, neutral, failure) before completion of neuropsychological tests and questionnaires. The results provided evidence of a dispositional relationship between poor executive functioning and aggressive tendencies, and extended it to situational level. For all participants, it showed that increases in impulsiveness (negative emotionality and aggressive choices) due to a negative feedback were concomitant with an inability to focus individuals’ attention on ongoing tasks.

Perceived emotional intelligence and aggression among adults: The moderating role of gender

“…Men reported higher scores in direct aggression, while women scored higher in frustration. These results were in line with previous studies examining gender differences in aggression (Pahlavan et al., ; Schober et al., ), and consistent with the hypothesis that men's strategies of coping in conflict situations are generally based on approach (anger and aggression), whereas women's strategies are based on avoidance (frustration and avoidance) (Pahlavan et al., ). The participants in our study filled out a questionnaire with different anger‐provoking scenarios, which could be comparable to conflict situations.…”

“…Although some studies have found evidence of the influence of both Gender and PEI on aggressive behaviour (e.g., Anderson & Bushman, ; Calvete & Orue, ; Mansfield et al., ; Pahlavan et al., ), to our knowledge no studies have assessed the moderating role of gender in the relationship between PEI and aggressive behaviours. This study contributes to our understanding of the role of gender in the relationship between PEI dimensions and emotional and behavioural components of aggressive behaviour among adults.…”

“…However, these results were found among women in our study, but not among men. This gender difference in the relationship between Repair and anger could be attributed to the mediating role of a failure experience between the gender–frustration relationship (Pahlavan et al., ). Higher levels of frustration contingent on the exposure to conflictive provoking situations among women (but not men) might have led women low in emotional regulation in our study to an increase in feelings of anger, compared to women high in emotional regulation, who might have managed their angry feelings after being exposed to conflict scenarios.…”

“…Gender was a moderator of aggressive behaviour. Males exhibited more physical and verbal violence (Anderson & Bushman, ; Archer, ; Calvete & Orue, ; Cohn, ; Hyde, ; Knight, Fabes, & Higgins, ; McGue, Bacon, & Lykken, ; Pahlavan, Mouchiroud, & Nemlaghi‐Manis, ; Schober, Bjarkqvist, & Somppi, ), while women reported higher levels of indirect or relational violence (Anderson & Bushman, ; Björkqvist, Osterman, & Kaukiainen, ; Crick & Grotpeter, ; Hess & Hagen, ; Pahlavan et al., ; Schober et al., ). These gender differences in the display of aggressive behaviour begin in preschool (Maccoby & Jacklin, ), and increase from 18 to 30 years, coinciding with the peak of reproductive activity consistent with the Sexual Selection Theory's emphasis on greater inter‐male competition during this age range (Archer, ).…”

Does Exposure to Noise Lead to Decreased Regulatory Abilities, and Increased Aggression?

“…As a matter of fact, the existing literature in these area shows that in spite of the early-development of the executive attention network (between ages 2 and 7), with practice, the ability to self-regulate can be contextually improved and trained. Actually, the results of our own research [132] analyzing effects of situational characteristics (experimental feedbacks: success, neutral, failure) on executive performance and affective reactivity in persons with Dysexecutive Syndrome (DES) and healthy adults (students, health workers) showed for all participants that increases in impulsiveness (negative emotionality and aggressive choices) due to a negative feedback were concomitant with an inability to focus individuals' attention on ongoing tasks. In addition, recent training programs have resulted in improved executive control and behavioral adjustment within special population (patient with specific brain injury; [134]; ADHD, [69] [135] [136]) and domains (attention process, working memory), even in animal [137].…”