Aggression and destructive behavior

The contribution makes an attempt to find internal differences of close and often seemingly indistinguishable behavioral phenomena which in modern psychology are classified as aggression and destruction. It also formulates the mechanism of development of aggression, examines its positive and negative sides. The authors justify the inseparable link between aggression and bodily self-expression and, basing on the works of eminent members of the Leningrad psychological school, make an assumption about natural foundations of aggression, which is further proven. They also propose the idea of existence of “aggression-acceptance” continuum, which is determined by the level of tactile-kinesthetic sensitivity. The article analyzes aggression from the point of view of existential psychotherapy. It presents a comparative analysis of the notions of “aggressive” and “destructive” in the context of different psychological schools and scientific directions. It also presents a hypothetic model of mechanisms of development and analytical criteria of different, by their nature, phenomena - aggression and destruction.