Sex, aggression and impulse control: an integrative account
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Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Three Laboratory Procedures for Assessing Different Manifestations of Impulsivity in Rats
Published on: March 17, 2019
Daniel Strüber1, Monika Lück, Gerhard Roth
1Brain Research Institute, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany. dstrueber@h-w-k.de
Abstract:
There is evidence that the male sex and a personality style characterized by low self-control/high impulsivity and a propensity for negative emotionality increase the risk for impulsive aggressive, antisocial and criminal behavior. This article aims at identifying neurobiological factors underlying this association. It is concluded that the neurobiological correlates of impulsive aggression act through their effects on the ability to modulate impulsive expression more generally, and that sex-related differences in the neurobiological correlates of impulse control and emotion regulation mediate sex differences in direct aggression. A model is proposed that relates impulse control and its neurobiological correlates to sex differences in direct aggression.
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