Self-regulation and aggression: Aggression-provoking cues, individual differences, and self-control strategies

Abstract

This chapter explores that aggressive impulses can be down-regulated by mustering self-control and using effective self-regulation strategies. A number of studies have confirmed that trait self-control is associated with reduced aggression levels. Aggressive impulses can arise for multiple reasons, such as instrumental gains, self-protection, or sadistic pleasure, to name but a few. In many cases, the expression of these impulses contradicts personal or social norms. Aggression often starts when self-control stops. Different mechanisms can be modified. Individuals differ in the extent to which they exercise these mechanisms, and/or the efficiency of these mechanisms, which are generally subsumed under the label of “self-control”. Self-control is a psychological resource that facilitates cognitive and behavioral strategies that decrease the likelihood that an unwanted impulse is expressed. The most influential models that outline these strategies are social information processing models and emotion regulation models.