An Attributional Analysis of Peer and Family Aggression

攻击性的一个重要诱因是认为别人要为影响自己的厌恶事件负责。这种认知评价会产生愤怒，而愤怒反过来又会引发反社会反应。在这个研究项目中，一系列相关的调查将阐明这些攻击的认知和情感决定因素，并提出促进公开敌意改变的方法。该建议包括实验室和实地方法；研究了一系列具有攻击性的人群，包括虐待者和被监禁的青少年；并考虑了各种与攻击有关的现象。一系列调查表明，在好斗的学龄男孩中，认为别人应该负责的想法是否特别突出。第二组研究调查了责任的推断是如何受到群体成员和内群体与外群体地位的影响的。第三组研究考察了好斗的年轻人的印象管理技巧，特别是他们对可能减轻责任和减少愤怒的说法（如忏悔和合法借口）的理解、使用和接受。然后将这些基本过程和机制纳入对虐待者和被监禁青少年的研究中。在前一种人群中，我们研究了他们倾向于让年幼的孩子为负面行为负责（即，将他们视为带有负面意图的行为），这种推断导致的愤怒强度，以及环境中的压力源影响这些判断和情绪的方式。最后，结合了推断他人责任的原则，充分理解和使用账户，以及推断外群体责任的长期后果的干预措施被设计出来，以被监禁的青少年作为这个40课计划的目标。干预措施还包括对与成就有关的结果自我负责的原则。因此，实验室研究的原理被用于试图改善不良青少年的社会和学业行为。攻击性行为破坏了家庭凝聚力、学生教育和邻里关系的目标。在这个研究项目中，我们研究了一些导致攻击行为的想法和情绪。这项研究包括了各种具有攻击性的人群（学校里有攻击性的孩子、被监禁的青少年和虐待者）；在实验室和自然环境（如学校）中进行；最后是一个干预项目试图减少被监禁的青少年随后的攻击性行为。指导这项研究的基本观点是，攻击性在一定程度上是由把影响自己的负面事件归咎于他人的倾向所激发的。这反过来又会引发愤怒和反社会反应。此外，责任和负面影响的推论特别针对外部群体成员，并且部分是由于在理解，使用和接受合理借口和忏悔方面的缺陷而助长的。在实验室研究中，研究了让他人对负面事件负责的倾向的显著性，研究了群内群外差异的影响以及沟通忏悔和合法借口的功能。这些攻击性的决定因素也被认为是虐待性的照顾者，在那里环境压力源对攻击性思维和情绪可能加剧的影响进行了调查。然后，设计了一种干预方法，该方法结合了推断他人责任的原则，充分理解和使用忏悔和合法借口等账户，以及推断外群体责任的长期后果。被监禁的青少年罪犯是这个40课课程的目标。干预措施还包括对与成就有关的成功和失败负责的原则。因此，从实验室研究中获得的理解被用于试图改善犯罪青少年群体的学术和社会行为。

An important instigator of aggression is the thought that others are responsible for aversive events that impact on the self. This cognitive appraisal produces anger, which, in turn, gives rise to antisocial responses. In this program of research, a series of interrelated investigations will elucidate these cognitive and affective determinants of aggression, suggesting methods to foster changes in overt hostility. The proposal incorporates laboratory and field methodologies; examines a range of aggressive populations, including abusive caregivers and incarcarated youths; and considers a variety of aggression-related phenomena. One series of investigations examines whether thoughts that others are responsible are particularly salient among aggressive school-aged boys. A second set of studies investigates how inferences of responsibility are influenced by group membership and ingroup versus outgroup status. A third set of studies then examines the impression management skills of aggressive youths, particularly their understanding, use, and acceptance of accounts (such as confession and legitimate excuses) that might mitigate perceptions of responsibility and reduce anger. These basic processes and mechanisms are then incorporated into the study of abusive caretakers and incarcarated adolescents. Among the former population, we examine their propensity to hold young children responsible for negative actions (i.e., see them as undertaken with negative intentions), the intensity of anger as a result of this inference, and the manner in which stressors in the environment affects these judgments and emotions. Finally, an intervention that incorporates principles about inferring responsibility in others, a full understanding and use of accounts, and the long term consequences of inferring outgroup responsibility is devised, with incarcarated adolescents as targets of this 40-lesson program. The intervention also incorporates principles of self-responsibility for achievement-related outcomes. Thus, principles from laboratory research are used in an attempt to improve both the social and academic behavior of delinquent adolescents. Aggressive behavior undermines the goals of family cohesion, student education, and neighborhood attachment. In this program of research, we examine some of the thoughts and emotions that give rise to aggressive behaviors. The research includes a variety of aggressive populations (aggressive children in school, incarcarated youths, and abusive caregivers); takes place in the laboratory as well as in natural settings (such as the school); and concludes with an intervention program attempting to reduce subsequent aggression among incarcarated adolescents. The basic idea guiding the research is that aggression is in part instigated by the tendency to hold others responsible for negative events that impact on oneself. This, in turn, gives rise to anger and antisocial responses. Furthermore, inferences of responsibility and negative affects are particularly expressed toward outgroup members, and are in part fostered by shortcomings in the understanding, use, and acceptance of legitimate excuses and confessions. In laboratory research, the salience of the propensity to hold others responsible for negative events is examined, and the impact of ingroup-outgroup distinctions as well as the function of communicating confessions and legitimate excuses are studied. These determinants of aggression also are considered in abusive caretakers, where the possible exacerbating effects of environmental stressors on aggressive thinking and emotions are investigated. Then, an intervention that incorporates principles about inferring responsibility in others, a full understanding and use of accounts such as confession and legitimate excuses, and the long term consequences of inferring outgroup responsibility is devised. Incarcarated adolescent offenders are the targets of this 40-lesson program. The intervention also incorporates principles of self-responsiblity for achievement-related success and failure. Thus, understanding gained from laboratory research is used in an attempt to improve both the academic and social behaviors in a population of delinquent adolescents.