De-Individuation & Aggression (OCR A-Level Psychology): Revision Notes
15.3.3 De-Individuation & Aggression
Deindividuation:
People display more aggression in large groups as they lose their sense of individual identity and responsibility, causing them to no longer be inhibited by social norms.
The likelihood of deindividuation is increased as:
- The size of the group increases
- When anonymous clothing is worn. This causes people to experience less personal guilt as they feel the responsibility is shared throughout the crowd.
Zimbardo:
Found that when participants felt anonymous due to wearing uniforms and sunglasses, they were significantly more likely to perform aggressive acts.
Thus, Zimbardo concluded that when people feel anonymous, they lose awareness of their responsibility and their inhibitions are reduced, which causes them to be aggressive.
Deindividuation evaluation:
(1)
P: De-individuation theory has practical application that allows for preventing aggression
E: For example, the introduction of street lighting and CCTV cameras due to the significance of anonymity in increasing aggression
E: This increases the validity of the explanation as it has proven to lead to beneficial change within society
(2)
P: Research support from Zimbardo
E: For instance, Zimbardo found that when participants felt anonymous, they were more likely to perform aggressive acts
E: This suggests that the anonymity provided by their clothing caused them to display aggressive behaviour, supporting the idea that deindividuation and loss of personal identity lead to aggression
(3)
P: There are ethical issues with researching aggression
E: For instance, in Zimbardo's experiment, many participants experienced psychological distress and anxiety
E: Thus, to research aggression, aggression must be encouraged which could cause harm to participants, making it difficult to research
(4)
P: De-individuation theory can't explain many types of aggression
E: For instance, it doesn't explain one-on-one aggression or aggression from individuals who aren't anonymous
E: This suggests that there must be other factors influencing why people perform aggressive behaviour