Both partners' negative emotion drives aggression during couples' conflict.

ABSTRACT: Researchers examining conflict between intimate partners believe that the experience and expression of emotion drives aggressive behaviour. Intra-personally, increases in negative affect make aggression more likely. Inter-personally, theoretical models suggest that each individuals' perception of their partners' emotion also influences aggression, potentially creating a Violence Escalation Cycle. Here, using a lab-based aggression task across a primary study (n = 104, number of trials = 3095) and a replication (n = 58, number of trials = 3167), we show that both intra- and inter-personal experiences of negative emotion predict reactive aggression within couples, revealing retaliation but not escalation. Critically, analyses of facial affect reveal that prototypic displays of negative emoti

SUBMITTER: McCurry AG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11331989 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature