Studies Have Found A Correlation Between Antisocial Behavior- Including Aggressive Behavior And Resistance To Authority- And Exposure To Violence

Have you ever heard of the theory that your actions and thoughts are directly affected by your relationship with your surroundings? In other words, what you see and learn from the things around you. This principle encompasses the “nurture” part in the “Nature vs. Nurture” argument. Fundamentally, it illustrates that our behavior is directly affected by how and what we are taught. Thus, if it has been taught to us that a certain action is ‘bad’, we will not do it. For instance, if we are taught that “Skateboarding inside is bad”, and we are punished every time we skateboard inside, or we make the observation that everybody abides by this restriction, we are likely to never skateboard inside. This is the core learning principal and stems from a branch of psychology known as “behaviorism”.

Behaviorism is often associated with psychologists like Skinner and Watson, who made use of animals in their experiments in order to demonstrate the effects of this psychological concept. Essentially, behaviorism is a theory that shows how a person’s behavior can be altered through positive and negative reinforcement. This change occurs because the person learns that good behavior is rewarded and bad behavior is punished. However, what happens when violence comes into the mix?

If someone is constantly exposed to violence, such as in their home environment or through playing video games, he or she has a higher chance of cultivating a violent temperament and acting out viciously. For example, let’s look at the case study of the notorious serial killer, Richard Kuklinski, otherwise known as the Ice Man. He has killed over 200 people, of which some were carried out for the mafia. But his main motive behind murdering these people was far simpler; he simply felt that they were not treating him with the respect he deserved. Now, it should be noted that Richard grew up in a household with two abusive and alcoholic parents and was the victim of continuous domestic neglect and violence. From a young age, it had already been instilled in Richard that violence was not only a way to assert himself, but also the only way through which results could and would be seen.

In a series of interviews conducted by a psychologist, it became clear that Richard was not only a violent man, but seemed to lack the emotional and mental stability of a normal human being. In fact, he often claimed that he felt indifferent when he was killing his victims, and was merely curious to see how far he could push himself. As such, the psychologist diagnosed him with Antisocial Personality Disorder, which accounted for his outbursts, general lack of remorse, and tendency to violence.

Based on this short case study, and the various findings that behaviourism presents, it appears that exposure to violence and aggression breeds these same qualities within the observer. What is your take on this? Food for thought.

– Cassey

Edited by: Seraphina Leong

SOURCES

Behaviorism. (n.d.). Retrieved October 17, 2014 from the Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behaviorism

Greene, K. & Krcmar, M. (2000). Connections Between Violent Television Exposure and Adolescent Risk Taking. MEDIAPSYCHOLOGY, 2, 195 217. Retrieved from http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/~kgreene/research/pdf/mediapsy00.pdf

Richard Kuklinski. (n.d.). Retrieved October 17, 2014 from the Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Kuklinski

Walton, A. G. (2013). Could Too Much TV In Childhood Lead To Antisocial Behavior In Adulthood?. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2013/02/18/could-too-much-tv-in-childhood-lead-to-antisocial-behavior-in-adulthood/