The Influence of Incompatible Responses on the Reduction of Aggression: An Alternative Explanation

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Abstract
The present research was designed to test an alternative explanation for the results of Baron's (1976) study concerning the reduction of aggression via incompatible responses. Prior to being detained at an intersection after the signal turned green, subjects were exposed to one of the following stimulus conditions: control, humor, aggression, or sexual arousal. According to the incompatible response hypothesis, the humor and sexual arousal conditions should serve to increase the latency of horn honking (reduce aggression), whereas the aggression condition should not. The obtained results offered no support for this hypothesis. They were, however, congruent with a distraction or attentional shift hypothesis.