Power and aggression: making sense of a fickle relationship

'Power' and 'aggression' are two constructs that seem like a natural fit. After all, why should people in power not deploy aggression to get their way? Yet, when looking at empirical studies, the relationship between power and aggression is fickle at best. In an effort to integrate the literature, the present narrative review draws on a neuro-biological model of aggression as a framework, which distinguishes between three motivational mechanisms: offence, defence, and marking/display. High (versus low) power likely facilitates offensive aggression and agonistic marking/display. However, high (versus low) power often coincides with elevated status, which counters some of the detrimental effects of power. Meanwhile, defensive aggression is relatively underresearched, but may be a more frequent occurrence amongst lower power individuals and groups.