The Bass-Darky technique was proposed back in the 60syears of the last century, but still finds many supporters and is actively used. We will tell about it today. It is safe to say that this technique (Bass-Darki questionnaire) is one of the most popular these days used in foreign psychology to study aggression. Before you talk about it, you should decide on the very concept of aggression. What are the mechanisms of its occurrence, its importance for humans? Let's see together.
What is aggression for?
Scientists believe that the use of aggression is one ofThe most popular solutions to problems that arise in a person in frustrating (difficult) situations. These difficult situations cause mental tension in people to cope with.
Aggressive actions can be a meansachieve a certain meaningful goal. They can also be a way to replace the satisfaction of any blocked need, mental discharge. Also, aggressive actions are used for self-assertion and self-realization.
Theories of aggression
For a long time, a psychological approach to aggression andaggressiveness was defined as theories that viewed it as a consequence of frustration (Rosenzweig, Dollard), and the concept of attraction. A number of publications on this issue appeared in the late 50s of the last century. This work has caused an influx of theoretical and experimental work on this topic, which includes the Bass-Darki questionnaire.
This technique is far from the only one thatused these days. Today there are many theories of aggression. The most famous of them - C. Lorenz and Z. Freud. Each of the theories has its own view of aggression, as well as its attitude to it. Due to this, they can find common features and divided into 4 main categories. Let's tell in brief about each of them.
Aggression - a congenital advance
Aggression can be considered as congenitaldeposit or promise. That is, it is a form of behavior inherent in us from birth, acting on an instinctive level. Adherents of theories belonging to this category, aggression is considered as a property of a person programmed genetically. It is already present in it and manifests itself throughout life. Aggression, according to the adherents of these theories, cannot be eradicated. At best, you can only reduce its impact.
Aggression can be controlled
Other theories view its manifestations ascognitive and emotional processes. Such a conclusion is based on the belief that each of us can manage aggression based on the skills acquired with life experience. In order to do this, it is necessary to be able to present potential dangers, as well as correctly assess those or other threatening factors.
Aggression is a must
Aggression can also be understood asnecessity generated by external factors and incentives. From this point of view, it is considered as a need that is realized directly under the influence of certain external stimuli. The “frustration theory of aggression” is the basis of this view. She was proposed by the American anthropologist and psychologist John Dollard. According to this theory, frustration necessarily leads to aggression in one form or another, and the latter, in turn, is always the result of frustration.
Aggression - an expression of social experience
Another approach to aggression is to treat it ascurrent expression of social experience. That is, it is a model of social behavior acquired during development. Aggressive reactions manifest in a person after he is in a similar situation or has been watching passively for it from the side. This is the result of the accumulation and subsequent application of the experience gained.
Harm caused by aggression
After analyzing the most popular views onthe concept of "aggression", we can say that it should be understood as destructive motivated behavior, which contradicts the rules and norms of human existence in society. This behavior causes harm to inanimate or animate targets of attack. It causes physical damage to them, or it may cause them a state of fear, tension, depression, negative experiences, that is, mental discomfort.
The concept of aggressiveness and its assessment
Aggressiveness is a special quality, propertypersonality, which is characterized by destructive tendencies, mainly in the sphere of subject-object relations. The destructive component of activity is probably necessary for a person in creative activity. After all, the needs of individual development form the ability to destroy and eliminate obstacles, to overcome all opposing the process.
Scientists have concluded that aggressivenesshas a quantitative and qualitative characteristic. Like any other property, its severity is different: from the almost complete absence to the maximum level of development. A certain degree of it must be in each person. Lack of aggressiveness leads to conformity, statements, passivity, etc. On the contrary, excessive development can characterize the person as a whole as a conflict, which lacks the ability to consciously cooperate.
Aggressiveness in itself does not make a personconsciously dangerous subject. After all, on the one hand, the connection that exists between aggression and aggression cannot be called rigid. They can be caused by various reasons. On the other hand, an act of aggression itself may not take on disapproving and consciously dangerous forms.
Aggressiveness - Malicious Activity
Aggressiveness in the consciousness of life - a synonymsuch a thing as "malicious activity". However, destructive behavior in itself does not possess "malicious intent." It is made by such a motive of activity, that is, of values, for the achievement of which this activity unfolds. Practical actions may be similar in appearance, but the motivational components in this case are the exact opposite.
Two types of aggression
Aggression can be divided on the basis ofabove, into 2 basic types. The first is motivational aggression, as self-worth. The second type of aggression is instrumental, considered as a means. This implies that both of them can take place both under the control of our consciousness and without it. In addition, both of these types are associated with such emotional experiences as hostility and anger.
Practicing psychologists are more interested init is precisely motivational aggression, considered as a manifestation of the realization of destructive tendencies inherent in the individual. If we determine the level of these tendencies, then it is possible to predict with great accuracy the likelihood of an open motivational aggression in a person. One of these diagnostic procedures is the Bass-Darki questionnaire. The technique that interests us was developed in 1957 by American researchers, by whose names they are named.
Applying the Bass-Darky Method
In foreign studies, this questionnaire receivedwide use. They confirmed its high reliability and validity. And in domestic works applied questionnaire Bass-Darki. This technique was used, in particular, S.N. Enikolopov in 1989. However, on domestic samples data on its standardization is not indicated.
Scientists note that the Bass-Darki technique fordiagnosis of aggressiveness in the situation of expertise is not protected from certain motivational distortions. The answer may depend, for example, on the attitude of the person himself, on the social desirability. In addition, the reliability of the results obtained also depends on the degree of confidence in the relationship between the psychologist and the subject, if the Bass-Darki technique is used to diagnose aggressiveness. Therefore, the obtained results require testing for reliability by retest or other methods. The use of this questionnaire in working with school students (from the 6th grade and above) and with teachers turned out to be quite diagnostic, as well as constructive for further correctional work. Currently widely used method Bass-Darki. The purpose of its application, we have considered, it is now necessary to determine the main provisions.
The distinction between the concepts of hostility and aggression
BUT.Bass, pushing off from the development of his predecessors, demarcated the concepts of hostility and aggression. He defined the first as a reaction that develops negative evaluations of events and people, negative feelings. The method of studying Bass-Darki aggression implies differentiation of various manifestations of hostility and aggression. The types of reactions that scientists have identified in this case are as follows.
Types of reactions
1. Physical aggression, that is, the use of physical force against another person.
2. Indirect, directed in a devious way to another person or not directed at anyone.
3. Irritation, that is, readiness at the slightest excitement to show negative feelings. It can also be defined as rudeness, irascibility.
4. Negativism, which is an oppositional manner in behavior. It can manifest itself in different ways, from passive resistance to the struggle against existing laws and customs.
5. Resentment, that is, envy or hatred towards others for certain actions, fictional or valid.
6. Suspicion, which can range from caution and distrust of people to the belief that they cause or plan to cause harm.
7. Another type of reaction is verbal aggression. It is an expression of negative feelings through verbal responses (threats, curses), and through the form (squeal, cry).
8. Guilt feelings represent a person’s possible conviction that he is bad, that he is doing wrong. This includes the remorse of conscience felt by him.
Completing the description of the Bass-Darki methodology, we notethat the questionnaire includes 75 statements. The subject must answer unequivocally to them: either "yes" or "no." Based on this, the degree of human aggressiveness is estimated. We now turn to the method of interpretation of the results.
Interpretation of results
Processing the Bass-Darky technique does not representgreat labor. Questions are formulated in such a way that they relate to only one form of aggression. In addition, the results of the Bass-Darki method are also easy to interpret because the influence of public approval of a response is maximally weakened.
Норма агрессивности, согласно Рогову Е. И., - the value of its index, which is equal to 21 ± 4. As for hostility, it should be in the range of 6.5-7 ± 3. A.A. Khvan’s scheme is somewhat more complicated, but it doesn’t greatly complicate such a method of investigating aggression as the Bass-Darki method. The interpretation of the results according to A. A. Khvan is as follows. The raw points scored on each individual scale must be multiplied by a factor. His goal is to bring to a hundred points the maximum value of the parameters for each scale that the Bass-Darki method suggests for diagnosing aggressiveness.
The interpretation, however, is not completely unambiguous.Using this technique, you need to understand that aggressiveness, which is a property of the individual, as well as aggression, understood as an act of behavior, can be analyzed only within the framework of a psychological analysis of the entire motivational and need sphere of a person. Otherwise, the results may not be accurate. Therefore, this technique (Bass-Darki questionnaire) is used together with others, such as projective techniques (for example, Luscher) and personality tests of various mental states (Spielberg, Cattell).
