Of Mice and Women Aspects of Female Aggression Edited by KAJ BJÖRKQVIST Department of Psychology Àbo Akademi University Turku, Finland PIRKKO NIEMELÄ Department of Psychology Turku University Turku, Finland ACADEMIC PRESS, INC. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers San Diego New York Boston London Sydney Tokyo Toronto This book is printed on acid-free paper. 0 Copyright © 1992 by ACADEMIC PRESS, INC. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Academic Press, Inc. 1250 Sixth Avenue, San Diego, California 92101-4311 United Kingdom Edition published by Academic Press Limited 24-28 Oval Road, London NW1 7DX Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Of mice and women : aspects of female aggression / Kaj Björkqvist and Pirkko Niemelä, editors, p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-12-102590-X 1. Women—Psychology. 2. Aggressiveness (Psychology) 3. Aggressive behavior in animals. I. Björkqvist, Kaj. II. Niemelä, Pirkko. HQ1206.03 1992 155.2'32-dc20 92-8880 CIP PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 92 93 94 95 96 97 MM 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To Kirsti Lagerspetz, pioneer in the study of female aggression, colleague, and friend. Contributors Numbers in parentheses indicate the pages on which the authors' contributions begin. David Adams (17), Psychology Department, Weslyan University, Middletown, Con- necticut 06457 David Benton (37), Department of Psychology, University College of Swansea, Swansea SA2 8PP, Wales Kaj Bjbrkqvist (3, 51), Department of Psychology, Abo Akademi University, SF- 20500 Turku, Finland D. Caroline Blanchard (317), Pacific Biomedical Research Center, Department of Anatomy and Reproductive Biology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, Univer- sity of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822 Robert J. Blanchard (317), Department of Psychology, University of Hawaii, Hon- olulu, Hawaii 96822 Paul F. Brain (27, 381), School of Biological Sciences, University College of Swansea, Swansea SA2 8PP, Wales if. B. Kimberley Cook (149), Fundacion La Salle de Ciencias Naturales, Instituto Caribe de Antropologia y Sociologia, Caracas, Venezuela Adma d'Heurle (283), Mercy College, Dobbs Ferry, New York 10522 Leonard D. Eron (89), Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60680 Adam Fraczek (107), The Maria Grzegorzewska College for Special Education, 02-352 Warsaw, Poland Douglas P. Fry (187), Anthropology Department, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, Florida 33711 Santiago Genovés (209), Instituto de Investigaciones Antropologicas, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico, D. F., Mexico Usa M. Glazer (163), Barnard College, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027 xix XX Contributors Charles Goldenbeld (217), Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, University of Utrecht, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands Jeffrey H. Goldstein (65), Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, University of Utrecht, 3508TC Utrecht, Netherlands Nancy G. Guerra (77), Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60680 Marc Haug(27\ 381), Laboratoire de Psychophysiologie, Université Louis Pasteur, 67000 Strasbourg, France Reijo Holmström (295), Department of Psychiatry, University of Turku, 20840 Turku, Finland Kathryn E. Hood (395), College of Health and Human Development, The Penn- sylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802 L. Rowell Huesmann (77), Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60680 Frank J.Johnson (381), Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Section of Neurobiology, Los Angeles, California 90089 Art Kaukiainen (51), Department of Psychology, Turku University, SF-20500 Turku, Finland Liisa Keltikangas-Järvinen (123), Department of Psychology, University of Helsinki, 00100 Helsinki, Finland Rolf Kuschel (173), Psychological Laboratory, University of Copenhagen, 2300 Copenhagen S., Denmark Béatrice Kvist (351), Department of Psychology, Âbo Akademi University, SF-20500 Turku, Finland Bodil Lindfors (229), Department of Psychology, Âbo Akademi University, SF- 20500 Turku, Finland Ralf Lindman (241), Department of Psychology, Abo Akademi University, SF- 20500 Turku, Finland Hein F. M. Lodewijkx (217), Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, University of Utrecht, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands Laurie Miller (77), Developmental Pediatrics, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027 Johannes Myyrä (263), Department of Psychology, Âbo Akademi University, SF- 20500, Turku, Finland Pekka Niemelä (201), Kukolainen, 21160 Merimasku, Finland Pirkko Niemelä (3, 273), Department of Psychology, Turku University, SF-20500 Turku, Finland Peter Oberg (133), Kuntokallio Center for Gerontological Training and Research, 01100 Östersundom, Finland Karin österman (51), Department of Psychology, Âbo Akademi University, SF- 20500 Turku, Finland Stefano Parmigiani (27), Institute of Zoology, University of Parma, 43100 Parma, Italy Michael Potegal (329), National Research Council, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Washington, D.C. 20307 Contributors xxi Lea Pulkkinen (113), Department of Psychology, University of Jyväskylä, 40351 Jyväskylä, Finland Jacob M. Rabbie (217), Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, Uni- versity of Utrecht, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands Gordon W. Russell (251), Department of Psychology, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada ΤΙΚ 3M4 Jan-Erik Ruth (133), Kuntokallio Center for Gerontological Training and Research, 01100 Östersundom, Finland N. Kenneth Sandnabba (367), Department of Psychology, Âbo Akademi University, SF-20500 Turku, Finland John Paul Scott (307), Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio Vappu Viemerö (99), Department of Psychology, Âbo Akademi University, SF-20500 Turku, Finland Arnaldo Zelli (77), Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60680 Preface Male aggressiveness has been thoroughly studied; however, little has been writ- ten on female aggressiveness. We felt a need existed for a compilation of research on this topic from the diverse disciplines that treat it: anthropology, social psy- chology, animal research, psychoanalysis, and literature. Of Mice and Women: Aspects of Female Aggression is such a compilation, and we hope that it will be a source for researchers in the field. As an interdisciplinary study, it may also serve teaching purposes in distinct disciplines. Several basic questions are considered in this book. Is the belief that females of all species are less aggressive than males a myth? Is female aggressive behav- ior perhaps only qualitatively, and not necessarily quantitatively, different from its male counterpart? Does female aggression within the human species differ from that within the animal species? Are gender differences in aggressive patterns caused by hormones and neurobiology, or can they be explained by reference to learning mechanisms? What are typical patterns of female aggression, and how do they develop? Are there perhaps cultures in which the patterns of female aggression differ drastically from those seen in the West, and are women in some cultures more aggressive than women in others? How have the different forms of female aggression been portrayed in literature? Addressing these questions and others of their kind necessitated a multi- disciplinary approach. We asked several distinguished scientists from different dis- ciplines—many of whom belong to the International Society for Research on Aggression, and all have conducted research on female aggression—to write a chapter about their research. This book is dedicated to and many of its chapters directly inspired by the work of Kirsti Lagerspetz, a pioneering investigator of the antecedents of both human and subhuman female aggression. Her discovery of the genetic component of aggression in mice and its interaction with learning mechanisms has proved to xxiii xxiv Preface be of extreme importance in the field of animal aggression. During recent years, her interest has turned to human female aggression and its various forms, specif- ically indirect aggression. Her research has always been exactly on the pulse of time, describing new, relevant topics. A book about the current state of knowl- edge on female aggression could hardly be dedicated to a more deserving person. The editing process of this book has been a valuable experience for both of us. We now certainly know more about female aggression than we did before, and by reading all the chapters we have had many inspiring insights and ideas. At the same time, we have come to realize how much research is still needed in the field. A book of this kind can naturally not be accomplished without help and sup- port from a variety of sources. Financial support has been given by the Research Council for the Social Sciences, the Academy of Finland, The Research Foun- dation of Âbo Akademi University, and the Turku University Foundation. We greatly appreciate their aid. In addition to the contributors of this volume, whom we thank whole- heartedly, there are several people whose help we would like to acknowledge. We would like to thank Nikki Fine at Academic Press for her kind encouragement at all stages of the editing process. Her letters were always a source of inspiration to us. Several people have aided us with the proofreading and typing, and we would like to thank Lindsey Hair, Anthony Johnson, Outi Nieminen, and Jacqueline Välimäki for their assistance. Two persons have given us invaluable help in the editing process, and we want to express our very special gratitude to them. One is David Morton, who is responsible for the style of much of this work. He has spent many long hours proof- reading and revising manuscripts under great time pressure. His linguistic skills and ability to phrase complicated terminology into readable English has certainly made the book more accessible to the reader. His work has been extremely valu- able to us. The other person is Karin Österman, who has facilitated our work in many respects. As a researcher in this field, she has also given professional suggestions. Her skill with computers and sense of organization have been indispensable to us; she has typed, taken care of files, and dealt with much of our correspondence. She is an invisible "third editor" without whose assistance this work would have been difficult to accomplish. Kaj Björkqvist Pirkko Niemelä D New Trends in the Study of Female Agression Kaj Björkqvist and Pirkko Niemelä I. INTRODUCTION: THE PHENOMENON OF "FEMALE AGGRESSION" II. FEMALE AGGRESSION: DEFINITION AND FORMS III. THE "MALE" PERSPECTIVE IV. THE DANGER OF ETHNOCENTRISM V. THE PROBLEM OF METHODOLOGY VI. RECENT STUDIES: METHODOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL CHANGE VII. AN EMERGING PERSPECTIVE VIII. ARE MALES MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN FEMALES? A. Is Physical Aggression the "True" Form of Aggression? B. Female-Male Encounters C. Female-Female Encounters IX. CONCLUSIONS REFERENCES I. Introduction: The Phenomenon of "Female Aggression" The study of female aggression as a phenomenon in itself has only recently begun to receive due attention. This chapter is an examination of developmental trends in the new research on human female aggression, considering the present stage of knowledge about, and discussing the reasons for, its various forms in different cul- tures as well as its occurrence during diverse life stages and situations. Since much of this research has been an attempt to describe in what way such aggres- sion varies from its male counterpart, attention is necessarily drawn here to the question of differences between the sexes; again, of the many reviews of sex dif- ferences in regard to aggression, it is only one written in the last few years that has focused specifically on female forms of aggressive behavior (Burbank, 1987). Of Mice and Women: 3 Copyright © 1992 by Academic Press, Inc. Aspects of Female Aggression All rights of reproduction in any form reserved. 4 Kaj Björkqvist and Pirkko Niemelä In consequence, we will question whether the statements "males are in general more aggressive than females" or "males are in general not more aggressive than females" are meaningful at all. II. Female Aggression: Definition and Forms Aggression (unspecified by gender) may be defined as an act done with the inten- tion to harm another person, oneself, or an object. Aggression and aggressiveness are considered to be two separate, but related, concepts, one an act, the other a personality trait. It may be useful to identify also the motivational state of hav- ing the intention to hurt, harm, or cause pain, in the definition of aggression. Zill- mann (1979), for example, differentiates between the attitude hostility and the behavior aggression. This is not always done (Dollard et al., 1939; Buss, 1961; Baron, 1977), perhaps because of the long tradition of behaviorism which states that motivational states may not be directly observed. We suggest though, that if not only acts, but also the motivational states, the intentions to hurt are consid- ered as aggression, concepts like "repressed" and "displaced" aggression become meaningful. Since Buss (1961), aggression has been categorized into dichotomies, such as physical versus verbal, and direct versus indirect. Feshbach (1964) coined the dichotomy instrumental versus hostile (emotional) aggression. A more common, but equally important dichotomy is attack (generally considered unjustified) ver- sus defense (justified). Receptively, the harm or pain induced by aggressive acts may be either physical or psychological by its nature. We think that these cate- gories may still be useful when we try to map sex differences with respect to aggression in various cultures, life situations, and life stages. Aggression may occur at the interpersonal (between individuals), group (between groups), or institutional (institutionalized by society, one group sup- pressing another) level. Females may be involved at all these levels, indeed at each we may distinguish between male-female, female-male, ana female-female (inter- female) aggression. The oppression of women, still a fact in a majority of cultures in the world today, is a vivid example of institutional aggression, which has been analyzed as the ultimate male-female aggression (see Myyrä, Chapter 24, this volume). During the various stages of life, females are members of different groups, and may accordingly get into a variety of conflict situations. We may differenti- ate between aggression within the primary group (the family), and aggression within secondary groups (school, work, etc.). During childhood, female aggression within the family is likely to appear in the form of sibling rivalry, although young girls may also feel hostility toward