General aggression model (GAM; Anderson & Bushman 2002) is a comprehensive and integrative theoretical framework within which multiple social, cognitive, and developmental theories are incorporated to aid comprehension of and research on human aggressive behavior. Some of the more prominent (but not the only) theories that GAM incorporates include cognitive neoassociation theory, social learning theory, and behavioral script theory. Each theory offers crucial insight into understanding the reasons why people behave aggressively. This entry outlines the processes of GAM, especially with regard to media effects, and discusses the extensions of GAM to other research topics.

Processes

General aggression model can be broadly broken down into two sets of related processes. Proximate processes are those that are immediately related to aggressive behavior. Distal processes are those that influence ...

  • Loading...
locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles