Chewing on it can chew you up: effects of rumination on triggered displaced aggression.
Ruminating about a provocation increases the likelihood of displaced aggression following a minor annoyance (trigger). In Study 1, provoked participants who ruminated for 25 min were more aggressive toward a fumbling confederate than were distracted participants. Provocation-induced negative affect was positively related to aggression but only among those who ruminated. Study 2 conceptually replicated Study 1 and also found that the more negatively people reacted to the trigger, the more likely the trigger was to increase displaced aggression. Study 3 replicated the findings of Studies 1 and 2 by using an 8-hr rumination period. All 3 studies suggest that ruminating about a provocation increases the likelihood that a minor triggering annoyance will increase displaced aggression.
Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA. bbushman@umich.edu
Brad J
BJ
Bushman
Angelica M
AM
Bonacci
William C
WC
Pedersen
Eduardo A
EA
Vasquez
Norman
N
Miller
D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012737:Sex Factors; D012919:Social Behavior