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A Model of Agonistic Behavior: Endocrine and Autonomic Correlates

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Abstract

Attempts to relate agonistic behavior to fluctuations in a specific physiological system, especially the autonomic nervous system, have been more instructive than conclusive in establishing the relationship between physiological functioning and aggression. Clearly, the variety of behaviors we label agonistic or aggressive are not the product of the functioning of a single, known system. If we were to select promising candidates, we might be well served to choose autonomic and endocrine functioning. Seeking physiological correlates of aggression in the endocrine system presents technical problems. Endocrine responses are not discrete, and the factors which control the nature and quantity of endocrine secretions are not completely understood. The endocrine system is composed of complex feedback subsystems, a characteristic which presents problems in deciding how and when to interrupt the sequences for measurement and investigation. These problems encourage unwanted disparity among studies and present difficulties in interpretation.

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© 1974 Plenum Press, New York

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Candland, D.K., Leshner, A.I. (1974). A Model of Agonistic Behavior: Endocrine and Autonomic Correlates. In: Limbic and Autonomic Nervous Systems Research. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-4407-0_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-4407-0_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-4409-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-4407-0

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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