CLASSROOM AGGRESSION - DETERMINANTS, CONTROLLING MECHANISMS, AND GUIDELINES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION PROGRAM

• NCJ Number: 51411
• Author(s): G R ADAMS
• Date Published: 1973
• Length: 14 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

HYPOTHESES CONCERNING THE CAUSES OF AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR ARE REVIEWED, METHODS OF CONTROLLING AGGRESSION ARE OUTLINED, AND A CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION PROGRAM BASED ON EXPERIMENTATION IS DESCRIBED.

Abstract

FRUSTRATION, THE EFFECTS OF OBSERVING AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR BY OTHERS, REINFORCEMENT, AND THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT ARE AMONG POSSIBLE DETERMINANTS OF AGGRESSION. CONTROL MECHANISMS INCLUDE STIMULUS CONTROL, PUNISHMENT, INDUCTION (A PARENTAL TECHNIQUE FOCUSING ON THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE CHILD'S ACT), SOCIAL REINFORCEMENT, SUCCESSIVE APPROXIMATIONS (BEHAVIOR SHAPING), AND CATHARSIS (E.G., MODIFYING THE ACTUAL EXPRESSION OF AGGRESSION BY VIEWING AGGRESSIVE PROGRAMS ON TELEVISION). WHEN POSSIBLE, TEACHERS SHOULD CONSULT AND WORK WITH SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS IN THE INITIAL STAGES OF IMPLEMENTING A BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION PROGRAM. THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD OF EXPERIMENTALISM -- USING OBSERVATIONS TO DEFINE THE PROBLEM, DEVELOPING HYPOTHESES ABOUT THE CAUSES OF THE PROBLEM AND ABOUT POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS, EXPERIMENTING WITH POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS -- IS A USEFUL APPROACH TO ACHIEVING MODIFICATION OF AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR IN THE CLASSROOM. AN ILLUSTRATION OF HOW THE EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH MAY BE APPLIED IN THE CLASSROOM IS PRESENTED. A LIST OF REFERENCES IS INCLUDED. (LKM)