Instrumental Aggression Research Paper

Aggression is defined as the intentional harm to another person. Preschoolers become aggressive when they believe that another child is trying to steal an object from them. Inhibition is the ability to tune out tasks that the individual deems as irrelevant. Inhibition is an important aspect of cognitive development because it allows psychologists to understand why certain kids are unable to perform particular tasks. Aggression is an important aspect of social development because it explains why children form certain types of aggression. Aggression is emotional or physical harm done to another person. Within aggression preschoolers experience instrumental aggression and relational aggression. Instrumental aggression is aggression as a result of not obtaining a desired goal; the individual who exercise this type of aggression has no intention to harm the other individual. A preschooler would exercise instrumental aggression when they are incapable of attaining a ball that another child is currently playing with. The preschooler becomes agitated and then throws a tantrum. A preschooler who exhibits aggression tends to be uncontrollable, hostile, and unapproachable. The preschooler’s behavior is attributed to their inability to reach the goals they
have set forth. Preschoolers are able to comprehend that behaviors such as hitting, biting, and spitting are unacceptable. However they perform such behaviors even though they are told not to do so.
Inhibition is the blocking of irrelevant information.
Children that do not have inhibition block their own cognitive beliefs and evaluate the opinions of others. An example of inhibition is ADHD. A preschooler with inhibition will tune out the sounds of the teacher teaching to focus on playing with a toy. The child deems the teacher to be an irrelevant object and focuses their attention on a much more pleasurable object. The behavior of a preschooler with inhibition is withdrawn, unfocused, and distant. Inhibition is needed to allow individuals to sustain their attention on one aspect at a time. Preschoolers with inhibition have the ability to focus, however they block stimuli that is irrelevant to the bigger
picture.
Inhibition connects to aggression because a preschooler who tunes out information they deem as irrelevant becomes unable to perform a certain task. As a result, the child throws a tantrum and becomes aggressive with the other children. For example, a preschooler that is unable to tune out the sounds of other kids while reading. The preschooler becomes aggressive because they are unable to concentrate on their task. The preschooler’s behavior becomes violent and often destructive.
Aggression connects to inhibition because an aggressive preschooler tends to ignore an authority figure. Due to the preschooler’s aggressive nature they are unable to understand the consequences of their actions. For example, a preschooler that is notorious for hitting other kids will tune out the emotions of the other kid and continue their behavior. The preschooler deems the other preschoolers emotion as irrelevant.
Inhibition has a greater effect on aggression than aggression has on inhibition. Aggression would be needed if the child is constantly being bullied or taken advantage of. The child’s use of aggression can help the child be more out spoken. Inhibition is needed when a child focuses too much attention on stimulus that are unimportant to the task they are trying to achieve. A preschooler who focus too much attention on toys loses the ability to focus on the teacher’s lesson plan. The preschooler deems the teacher to be irrelevant and focuses all their attention on the surrounding toys. I believe each development should be studied separately. In order for psychologist to understand how these two development relate, they have to first understand each development separately.