Neural Mechanisms of the Rejection-Aggression Link

Chester, David S.; Lynam, Donald R.; Milich, Richard; DeWall, C. Nathan

doi:10.31234/osf.io/dncbz

Cited by 12 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 51 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Further, such aggressive pleasure accounted for a significant portion of the effect of sadism on aggression. Sadism may thus be reinforced by experiences of aggressive pleasure and this reinforcement may serve as a proximate mechanism by which aggressive and sadistic traits and tendencies are formed and reinforced over time (Chester, Lynam, Milich, & DeWall, 2018). These findings fit within the growing literature that establishes positively-valenced affective states as a potent motivator of aggression (Chester, 2017).…”

Section: Is the Aggressive Behavior Of Sadists Linked To The Experiensupporting

confidence: 73%

Sadism and Aggressive Behavior: Inflicting Pain to Feel Pleasure

Chester¹,

DeWall²,

Enjaiain³

2018

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Sadism is a ‘dark’ trait that involves the experience of pleasure from others’ pain, yet much is unknown about its link to aggression. Across eight studies (total N=2,255), sadism predicted greater aggression against both innocent targets and provocateurs. These associations occurred above-and-beyond general aggressiveness, impulsivity, and other ‘dark’ traits. Sadism was associated with greater positive affect during aggression, which accounted for much of the variance in the sadism-aggression link. This aggressive pleasure was contingent on sadists’ perceptions that their target suffered due to their aggressive act. After aggression, sadism was associated with increases in negative affect. Sadism thus appears to be a potent predictor of aggression that is motivated by the pleasure of causing pain. Such sadistic aggression ultimately backfires, resulting in greater negative affect. More generally, our results support the crucial role of anticipated and positive forms of affect in motivating aggression.

show abstract

Section: Is the Aggressive Behavior Of Sadists Linked To The Experiensupporting

confidence: 73%

Sadism and Aggressive Behavior: Inflicting Pain to Feel Pleasure

Chester¹,

DeWall²,

Enjaiain³

2018

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…These findings suggest that aggression's link with stability in aggression-related positive affect extends beyond the immediate aggressive act to individuals' broader behavior patterns. Indeed, our results lend preliminary support to a reinforcement model of aggression, in which greater experiences of positive affect and reward serve to establish and reinforce aggressive acts (Chester, Lynam, Milich, & DeWall, 2018). The affective mechanisms revealed in the present research may serve as proximate pathways underlying why some individuals are ultimately more dispositionally aggressive than others.…”

Section: Reinforcement Modelsupporting

confidence: 72%

The Flux, Pulse, and Spin of Aggression-Related Affect

Chester¹,

Clark²,

DeWall³

2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Aggression is an affect-laden behavior. The within-person variability of affective states that immediately precede, accompany, and follow aggression — and their links to between-person variability in aggressive behavior and traits — remain incompletely understood. To address this gap in our understanding, we examined eight studies in which 2,173 participants reported the negative and positive affect they experienced before, during, and after a laboratory or online aggression task. We quantified the within-person variability within (flux) and across (pulse) negative and positive affect intensity, as well as the variability in oscillations between negative and positive affect (spin). Internal meta-analyses revealed an association between aggressive behavior and traits and flux in positive affect (against our preregistered predictions). Probing this effect with piecewise growth models showed that less aggressive individuals exhibited a pronounced decrease in positive affect during aggression, as compared to before and after the act. This downward fluctuation in positive affect was attenuated among aggressive individuals, who exhibited relatively stable levels of positive aggression-related affect. Thus, stable positive affect surrounding an aggressive act and higher positive affect during the act may buttress and promote aggressive tendencies. These findings support a reinforcement model of aggressive behavior, contrast with the aggression literature’s conventional focus on negative affect and the instability thereof, and point to the utility of dynamic measures of moment-to-moment affect in understanding human social behavior.

show abstract

“…Correspondingly, enhanced acceptance of unfair offers and dampened anger response in the UG were found after transcranial stimulation of the vmPFC (N = 25 healthy volunteers; [42]), and physical aggression correlated with smaller vmPFC [43] but larger striatal [44] volume in healthy participants. Additionally, retaliatory aggression in response to social exclusion was associated with VS activity and connectivity to the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC) [45]. Connectivity was reduced in aggressive participants, consistent with the vlPFC's role in emotional action regulation [45].…”

Section: Frustrative Non-rewardmentioning

confidence: 88%

Understanding Brain Mechanisms of Reactive Aggression

Bertsch

Florange

Herpertz

2020

Curr Psychiatry Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose of Review To review the current literature on biobehavioral mechanisms involved in reactive aggression in a transdiagnostic approach. Recent Findings Aggressive reactions are closely related to activations in the brain’s threat circuitry. They occur in response to social threat that is experienced as inescapable, which, in turn, facilitates angry approach rather than fearful avoidance. Provocation-induced aggression is strongly associated with anger and deficits in cognitive control including emotion regulation and inhibitory control. Furthermore, the brain’s reward system plays a particular role in anger-related, tit-for-tat-like retaliatory aggression in response to frustration. More research is needed to further disentangle specific brain responses to social threat, provocation, and frustration. Summary A better understanding of the psychological and neurobiological mechanisms involved in reactive aggression may pave the way for specific mechanism-based treatments, involving biological or psychotherapeutic approaches or a combination of the two.

show abstract

Neural Mechanisms of the Rejection-Aggression Link

Cited by 12 publications

References 51 publications

Sadism and Aggressive Behavior: Inflicting Pain to Feel Pleasure

Sadism and Aggressive Behavior: Inflicting Pain to Feel Pleasure

The Flux, Pulse, and Spin of Aggression-Related Affect

Understanding Brain Mechanisms of Reactive Aggression

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About