Beyond the individual: A consideration of context for the development of aggression (original) (raw)
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Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 1989
This paper reviews and critiques the growing literature on the distinction between reactive and proactive aggression in children and adolescents. Empirical findings suggest that the subtypes of aggression are (a) preceded by different familial precursors, (b) associated with different behavioral outcomes, (c) driven by different social-cognitive and emotional processes, and (d) related to different social experiences. Because measurement difficulties have been a prominent concern in the study of reactive and proactive aggression, a discussion of various assessment approaches is included. Suggestions are made for future research directions, including a greater use of observational and laboratorybased methods, more longitudinal designs, and a greater focus on the careful assessment of the subtypes of aggression.
Children’s social cognition about proactive aggression
Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 2013
In this study, 6-and 9-year old children (N=258) observed two instances of proactive aggression (one relational, the other direct aggression) that were committed by members of a group towards out-group members. Participants were either members of the group or were independent observers. Analyses of the participants' social cognition about the aggressor and the aggression (cause of aggression, morality of aggression, attitude toward aggressor, exclusion of aggressor) indicated that overall group members were more positive towards aggressors than were independent observers. Although intergroup competition was perceived to be the cause of the aggression, participants disapproved of both types of aggression, especially direct aggression, disapproval increased with age, and girls disapproved of relational aggression more than boys. Group members' social cognition about the aggressor and the aggression comprised a coherent cognitive process, for both types of aggression, but the observers' process was simpler and differed by aggression type.
Research on aggression focuses almost exclusively on the aggressive individual so that aggression is usually described as an individual-centered event. By contrast, the model presented in this article was developed through research of naturally occurring, aggressive interactions between adolescents in which the social and physical environment of aggressive events is a critical focus. The model provides a conceptual frame for the analysis of aggression in social interactions in natural settings that takes the complexity of social, environmental, and individual factors into account by distinguishing three systems (the biological, psychic, and social systems) and analyzing their interrelations and co-evolutionary processes. This article considers consequences for aggressive behavior when systems of different phylogenetic ages affect one another, and it delineates the interrelationships between systems and their environments and their mutual influence on one another. The model generated an innovative methodology for assessing aggression in natural settings and new technique, the use of camera-glasses for recording data of social interactions and environments from the aggressively reacting individual's perspective.
Aggressive Behavior, 2009
For a sample followed from age 9-13 (N=281), this investigation examined developmental trajectories for social and physical aggression as measured by teacher ratings. Trajectories for both forms of aggression were estimated first separately, then jointly. Mean levels of both social and physical aggression decreased over time for the overall sample, but with high variability of individual trajectories. Subgroups followed high trajectories for both social and physical aggression.
Key issues in the development of aggression and violence from childhood to early adulthood
Annual review of psychology, 1997
Different manifestations of aggression from childhood to early adulthood are reviewed to establish how early manifestations are related to later manifestations. Similarities and differences in manifestations of aggression between the two genders are noted. Developmental sequences and pathways from minor aggression to violence are highlighted. Long-term escalation is contrasted with short-term escalation at older ages. Although studies have emphasized high stability of aggression over time, data show that a substantial proportion of aggressive youth desist over time. Temperamental, emotional, and cognitive aspects of aggression are reviewed, either as precursors or co-occurring conditions to aggression. Selected processes in the realms of the family, peers, and neighborhoods are highlighted that are known to be associated with juvenile aggression. Cumulative, long-term causes are contrasted with short-term causes, and causes associated with desistance in aggression are reviewed. Annu. Rev. Psychol. 1997.48:371-410. Downloaded from arjournals.annualreviews.org by VIVA on 04/16/06. For personal use only.
Mind, Brain, and Education, 2010
The role of context in the development of child aggression was studied. The effects of peer aggregation and group composition on aggression development in intervention contexts and classroom contexts were compared using 71 elementary school children. We hypothesized that, due to peer group effects, group-trained children would benefit less from a social skills intervention program than individually trained children. We further hypothesized that children who transferred from special to regular education would show a change toward less aggression. This was hypothesized because of the relatively fewer accounts of negative peer-group effects in regular education. The results show that the social skills intervention program did not have differential effects for group-trained versus individually trained children. However, a change toward less aggression was found in children who transferred from special to regular education. We suggest that interventions toward decreasing child aggression might be more fruitful if the social context in which the children operate daily is considered.
Toward a More Functional Analysis of Aggression
Education and Treatment of Children, 1995
Given the substantial and oftentimes irreversible human loss resulting from aggressive acts, the need for systematic, treatment-linked assessment of aggression in school-aged children and youth cannot be overstated. Based upon recent research, the authors provide a broadly framed model for the functional analysis of aggression in school-age children and youth. Our model incorporates multi-modal data collection and data triangulation to generate credible hypotheses regarding the function(s) of aggression. Three primary data sources-record review and interviews, naturalistic observation, and analogue assessment-fonn the cornerstone of the model. Key features of our approach to the assessment of aggression include operational definition(s) of target behavior(s), examination of the environmental context(s) of aggression, and discovery of the function(s) of aggressive behaviors for the individual. Samples of several specific, ready-to-use data collection instruments and a basic description of the assessment procedure are presented. The assessment process assumes that a team of individuals participates in data collection, data analysis, and hypothesis generation. * * * Countless acts of aggression and violent behaviors, one incidence after another, typify America's classrooms; the worst aggressive acts are documented and students counseled, suspended, or expelled from school on a daily basis. With each additional seemingly senseless and uncontrollable act, parents and professionals further despair. Yet, research indicates that for many youngsters "aggression" is not unpredictable or without "sense." We know, for example, that as the majority of young children grow, their aggressive behaviors are replaced increasingly by culturally-sanctioned, prosocial behaviors (Kauffman, 1993). In contrast, data clearly show that for some children-particularly those whose episodes of aggression begin early, are frequent, and receive reinforcement-aggressive behavior amplifies, becomes threatening and assaultive, entrenched, and highly resistant to change (Patterson, 1982, 1992). Research also documents the operant nature of disruptive and Please direct inquires for protocols to