Option 3 Study Guide

Study Guide for Aggression and Offending Behaviour

1. Neural and Hormonal Mechanisms

• Review the role of the limbic system, serotonin, and testosterone in aggression.

2. Genetic Factors

• Understand the implications of the MAOA gene on aggressive behavior.

3. Ethological Explanation

• Familiarize yourself with innate releasing mechanisms and fixed action patterns.

4. Evolutionary Explanations

• Explore how aggression may have evolved as a survival mechanism.

5. Social Psychological Explanations

• Study the frustration-aggression hypothesis, social learning theory, and de-individuation.

6. Institutional Aggression

• Compare dispositional and situational explanations of aggression in prisons.

7. Media Influences

• Analyze the impact of violent media on aggression, focusing on desensitization and cognitive priming.

8. Offender Profiling

• Learn about the typology approach, investigative psychology, and geographical profiling.

9. Biological Explanations of Offending Behaviour

• Review genetic and neural explanations for offending behavior.

10. Psychological Explanations of Offending Behaviour

• Understand Eysenck's theory, cognitive explanations, and differential association theory.

11. Custodial Sentencing

• Examine the aims and psychological effects of custodial sentencing.

12. Behaviour Modification in Custody

• Study techniques used for behavior modification in prison settings.

13. Anger Management and Restorative Justice

• Review the principles of anger management programs and restorative justice.

14. Addiction

• Understand the concepts of physical and psychological dependence, tolerance, and withdrawal syndrome.

15. Risk Factors in Addiction

• Identify genetic, personality, and social risk factors for addiction.

16. Nicotine and Gambling Addiction

• Explore the neurochemistry and learning theories related to nicotine and gambling addiction.

17. Reducing Addiction

• Review various therapeutic approaches to reducing addiction, including drug therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy.

18. Prochaska's Six-Stage Model

• Familiarize yourself with the stages of behavior change outlined in Prochaska's model.

Exam Practice Guidance

• Use past papers and mark schemes to practice answering exam questions.
• Focus on structuring your answers clearly and integrating relevant theories and studies.