Friendliness to Animals and Verbal Aggressiveness to People: Using Prison Inmates Education Networks as an Illustration

摘要

Goal of this research is to detect possible relations between animal-related attitudes and verbal aggressiveness as well as types combining such parameters. The sample collected in 2015 contains two adult education classes equivalent to secondary school level (class A = 23 inmates and B = 12 inmates, all male) at a correctional facility. Questionnaires were used. Network analysis software (Visone) and conventional statistics (SPSS) are used for calculating network variables (indegree, outdegree, katz, pageranketc) and implementing Spearman test and Principal Component Analysis. Inmates who have adopted an animal-friendly value system and are too coward to react against torture of animals, maintain a repressed emotion. If they do not intervene and provoke, then they are also not targeted by others. No reaction against torture is also connected with a deep-rooted aggressiveness. Concerning superficial aggressiveness, a profile, whose characterize is multiple verbal aggressiveness, can be attributed to repressed emotions. A type is torturing and indifferently restricts his aggressiveness, as he can satisfy his need of dominance by being aggressive towards animals. A type of inmate who loves animals and reacts against their torture, presents the most restricted and relatively smooth aggressiveness, as he discharges his repressed emotions to this reaction. Under condition of indifference, keeping pets is not evidence of loving but of a need of companionship. As for the deep-rooted aggressiveness (over-extroversion), it does not seem to be triggered by any repression.