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The Natural History and Developmental Functions of Aggression

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Handbook of Developmental Psychopathology

Abstract

Stories of antiquity indicate that aggression and violence have deep historical roots in human nature or at least in the nature of human storytelling. The Odyssey and the Iliad are laced with heavy doses of bloody violence hate jealousy and retribution. But popular fascination with themes of aggression and violence are not vestigial if the subject matter of motion pictures of the 1990s are any indication. And beyond fiction and fantasy virtually all significant military and political leaders in modern history— from George Washington and Franklin D Roosevelt to Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler— have achieved greatness (or infamy) partly because of their willingness to direct others into war death and destruction.1 Accordingly there may be an element of doublespeak in viewing aggression and violence as “inhuman.” The historical record indicates that aggression is thoroughly human and often romanticized. It has even been seen as banal (Arendt 1963).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Late of the Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27514, USA

    Robert B. Cairns

  2. Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 25714, USA

    Beverly D. Cairns

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  1. Robert B. Cairns
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  1. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

    Arnold J. Sameroff

  2. Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA

    Michael Lewis

  3. Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

    Suzanne M. Miller

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Cairns, R.B., Cairns, B.D. (2000). The Natural History and Developmental Functions of Aggression. In: Sameroff, A.J., Lewis, M., Miller, S.M. (eds) Handbook of Developmental Psychopathology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-4163-9_22

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