Abstract
Event-related brain potentials were recorded to investigate electrophysiological correlates of aggression in high and low socioeconomic status (SES) participants who responded to violent and nonviolent images by using a choice reaction time paradigm. ERP data showed that violent images elicited a smaller N2 deflection than did nonviolent images in both high and low SES groups, but there was no difference in N2 amplitudes to aggressive and non-aggressive information as a function of SES. Notably, the latency of N2 in the low SES group was longer than that of the high SES group, suggesting slowness by the low SES group in deploying control responses. In addition, the low SES group exhibited significantly smaller P3 amplitudes to violent images, suggesting a reduction in brain activity known to reflect activation of the aversive motivational system, and this findings link this brain activity to aggressive behavior. As a whole the present findings show that participants low in SES seem to display similar psychophysiological responses to individuals high in aggression.
Highlights
Aggression defined as the expression of angry verbal or motor behavior directed toward people or objects
We used a choice reaction time paradigm to examine the electrophysiological correlates of aggression in high and low socioeconomic status (SES) groups
The results indicated that the N2 component of low SES group peaked later than that of group higher in SES
Summary
Aggression defined as the expression of angry verbal or motor behavior directed toward people or objects. It is common in people and non-human animals, and includes aggressive behavior and refers to a set of psychological and emotional responses (Stewart et al, 2010; Krämer, Büttner, & Münte, 2008). It is common for people to show and experience aggression, for example, as a result of frustrating life experiences (Miller, 1941), recurring exposure to circumstances that trigger aggression (e.g., violent imagery, interpersonal aggression, conflict) can desensitize individuals to it. This proposal, which captures the desensitization hypothesis, has been supported in studies that examined individual differences in exposure to violent content (e.g., people who play violent video games) (Bartholow, Bushman, & Sestir, 2006). To better gauge the relationship between SES and aggressive responding, we use an ERP methodology to examine at the electrophysiological level the responses of low and high SES groups to violent and non-violent imagery
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