group territorial behavior

the tendency for ethnic and other groups to establish and defend areas as separate or shared territories. Such behavior can be observed, for instance, in the neighborhoods of large cities and in the activities of city street gangs. A form of intragroup territorial behavior is often seen in family settings and workplaces, where individuals may regard certain rooms or areas or even certain chairs as their personal territory.

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Psychology term of the day

May 8th 2024

weapons effect

increased hostility or a heightened inclination to aggression produced by the mere sight of a weapon. If provoked, individuals who have previously been shown a weapon will behave more aggressively than will those who have not. Subsequent research has indicated that this aggressive behavior is primed by the sight or suggestion of weapons (see priming) and that any other object associated with aggression can have the same effect. [identified in 1967 by U.S. psychologists Leonard Berkowitz (1926– ) and Anthony LePage]