Gender Differences in Psychopathic Traits,Types, and Correlates of Aggression Among Adjudicated Youth

The current study investigated gender differences in types and correlates of aggression among 150 adjudicated youth (M age = 15.2, SD = 1.4). In cluster analysis, consistent with past studies, one aggressive group characterized by moderate levels of reactive aggression and one characterized by high levels of proactive and reactive aggression emerged and these patterns were consistent across gender. For both boys and girls, the combined proactive/reactive aggression cluster showed the greatest levels of aggression, impulsivity, and callous-unemotional traits, supporting a severity over a typology model of proactive and reactive aggression. Girls displayed significantly higher rates of physical and relational aggression than boys. Girls were highly aggressive toward both girls and boys, whereas boys were highly aggressive only toward other boys. Girls also showed multiple indications of severity and emotionality, indexed by higher rates of negative affect, anxiety, distress about social provocations, and empathy.     

The role of empathy and social anxiety in Latinx adolescents' indirect peer aggression during the transition to high school

The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between decreased empathy (i.e., cognitive and affective) and indirect and cyber peer aggression among Latinx adolescents during their transition to high school. Further, we examined the degree to which social anxiety moderated this relationship. Participants were 469 Latinx ninth graders, ages 13–17 years (M = 14.52, SD = 0.58; 58% girls). Adolescents completed the Revised Peer Experiences Questionnaire, Cyber Peer Experiences Questionnaire, Basic Empathy Scale, and Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents at two different time points, 3 months apart. Hierarchical linear regression analyses revealed concurrent and prospective relationships between lower cognitive empathy and the perpetration of both indirect and cyber aggression. In addition, social anxiety moderated the concurrent associations between both types of empathy and both types of aggression perpetration. Results suggest that interventions that facilitate cognitive empathy and decrease social anxiety may help to reduce adolescents' indirect and cyber aggression toward peers throughout the high school transition.     

Exploring the Association between Aggression and Anxiety in Youth: A Look at Aggressive Subtypes,Gender, and Social Cognition

We examined the associations among dimensions of aggression and anxiety disorder symptoms in an ethnically diverse community sample of youth (N = 83; 46% female). Research supports the existence of four aggressive subtypes (i.e., reactive overt, reactive relational, proactive overt, and proactive relational), and past research has found associations between relational aggression and anxiety, as well as between reactive aggression and anxiety. However, past studies have not examined the associations among anxiety symptoms and the combined subtypes of aggression mentioned above. Results of our study provided support for an association between anxiety and reactive relational aggression. In addition, gender was found to moderate the association, in that males with high anxiety showed higher levels of reactive relational aggression than males with low anxiety and girls. Further, we found that socially based negative cognitive errors mediated the association between reactive relational aggression and anxiety. Results are discussed in terms of clarifying gender differences in aggression, treatment implications, and the need for longitudinal studies to delineate the temporal associations between aggression and anxiety.     

Mothers' Management of Adolescent Peer Relationships: Associations With Aggressive,Prosocial, and Playful Behavior

The authors examined the relation between adolescents' reports of mothers' management of peer relationships and adolescents' reports of their own aggressive, prosocial, and playful behaviors. The sample comprised 92 adolescents (M age = 15.41 years, SD = 1.81 years) enrolled in a residential summer camp. Higher levels of consulting were related to lower levels of adolescents' relational aggression, physical aggression, playful teasing, and rough-and-tumble play. Higher levels of consulting were related to higher levels of prosocial behavior. Higher levels of guiding were related to higher levels of adolescents' relational aggression and social inclusion. Higher levels of granting access to peers were related to higher levels of adolescents' prosocial behavior and social inclusion. Moderate levels of granting access to peers were related higher levels of playful teasing.     

Do Positive Self-Perceptions Have a “Dark Side”? Examination of the Link between Perceptual Bias and Aggression

The hypothesis that positive self-perceptions may have a dark side was investigated in the present study by examining the relationship between positively biased self-perceptions and aggression. Ratings of actual and perceived social acceptance of third-grade (n = 278), fourth-grade (n = 260), and fifth-grade (n = 321) students were compared to form a measure of perceptual bias. Peers provided nominations for overt and relational aggression. Gender differences were found for aggression (males were more overtly and relationally aggressive than females) but not perceptual bias. African-American children held more positive perceptions of their social acceptance and were perceived by peers as more aggressive than Caucasian children. Even after controlling for the effects of gender and ethnicity, more positively biased perceptions were associated with more peer nominations for overt and relational aggression. Contrary to an optimal range of bias hypothesis, even moderately positive self-perceptions were associated with elevated levels of aggression.     

Boys’ and Girls’ Relational and Physical Aggression in Nine Countries

Distinguishing between relational and physical aggression has become a key feature of many developmental studies in North America and Western Europe, but very little information is available on relational and physical aggression in more diverse cultural contexts. This study examined the factor structure of, associations between, and gender differences in relational and physical aggression in China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States. Children ages 7–10 years (N = 1,410) reported on their relationally and physically aggressive behavior. Relational and physical aggression shared a common factor structure across countries. In all nine countries, relational and physical aggression were significantly correlated (average r = .49). Countries differed in the mean levels of both relational and physical aggression that children reported using and with respect to whether children reported using more physical than relational aggression or more relational than physical aggression. Boys reported being more physically aggressive than girls across all nine countries; no consistent gender differences emerged in relational aggression. Despite mean‐level differences in relational and physical aggression across countries, the findings provided support for cross‐country similarities in associations between relational and physical aggression as well as links between gender and aggression. Aggr. Behav. 38:298‐308, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Aggression Norms in the Classroom Social Network: Contexts of Aggressive Behavior and Social Preference in Middle Childhood

In a cross‐sectional sample of African‐American 2nd–4th grade students (N = 681), we examine the moderating effects of classroom overt and relational aggression norms on peers’ social acceptance of classmates who exhibit overt and relational aggression in urban schools. Extending theory and research on classroom norms, we integrate social network data to adjust aggression norms based on children’s direct and indirect connections in the classroom. Results of multilevel models indicate that network‐based classroom aggression norms moderated relations between children’s aggressive behavior and their social preference. Specifically, children benefited socially when their form of aggressive behavior fit with what was normative in the classroom social context. The moderating effect of classroom aggression norms was stronger for the association between overt aggression and social preference than relational aggression and social preference. Relationally aggressive youth were socially preferred by peers regardless of the classroom norm, although this positive association was magnified in classrooms with higher levels of relational aggression. Future research focused on aggression norms within classroom social networks are discussed and implications for school prevention efforts are considered.     

Empathy as a cognitive inhibitor of interpersonal aggression

The studies presented in this paper examined empathy, especially perspective taking, as a potential inhibitor of interpersonal aggression. The theoretical rationale for these investigations derived from Zillmann's [(1988): Aggressive Behavior 14: 51–64] cognitive excitation model. Study 1 revealed that dispositional empathy correlates negatively with self-reported aggression and with conflict responses that reflect little concern for the needs of the other party. Empathy also was positively related to constructive responses to interpersonal conflict (i. e., those that do involve concern for the needs of the other party). In Study 2, perspective taking was manipulated with instructions to subjects prior to participation in a reaction-time task designed to measure aggression. When threat was relatively low, subjects who were instructed to take the perspective of the target responded less aggressively than did those who had been instructed to focus on the task. Study 3 examined the effect of dispositional perspective taking on verbal aggression. Threat was manipulated in terms of the combination of provocation and gender of the interactants. As predicted, perspective taking related to aggression inhibition under conditions of moderate threat–for males under low provocation and females under high provocation. These effects were predicted and explained in the context of the cognitive-excitation model. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Relation of Depression and Anxiety to Self‐ and Peer‐Reported Relational Aggression

The primary purpose of this multimethod and multimeasure study was to identify how the peer relationships of Australian adolescents (ages 9–15 years; N = 335) at school, including relational aggression and victimization, correlated with their symptoms of depression and anxiety. Moreover, relational aggression and victimization were measured via both self‐ and peer report, and discrepancies between reports were considered as correlates of symptoms and peer relationship status. Adolescents who reported more symptoms of depression and anxiety also self‐reported more relational victimization and reported their peers as less trustworthy. Adolescents who overreported their own relational victimization and aggression compared with peer report had more symptoms compared with those who agreed with their peers or underreported their aggression and victimization. Adolescents who underreported their own aggression were not only more socially prominent but were also more disliked by their peers. When considered independent of self‐reports, no measure of peer‐reported peer status, aggression, or victimization was associated with depressive symptoms; but adolescents reported as more accepted by their peers had fewer anxiety symptoms. Longitudinal research should be conducted to examine adolescents' increasing socioemotional problems as correlates of discrepancies between self‐ and peer reports of relational aggression and victimization. Aggr. Behav. 38:16‐30, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The Protective Role of Teacher Preference for At‐Risk Children's Social Status

Aggressive behaviors have been associated with social costs (e.g., rejection) and benefits (e.g., popularity) in previous studies. The current study sought to examine the moderating effect of teacher preference on the association between distinct forms of aggressive behavior (i.e., physical aggression and relational aggression) and social status (i.e., rejection and popularity), and to explore whether these associations differed for boys and girls. Fourth and fifth grade students (N = 193) completed peer nomination procedures to assess rejection and aggressive behavior and teachers provided self‐reports of their preferences for their students. Findings indicated that relationally aggressive girls were more likely to be popular with their peers when their teachers also liked them. In addition, both relationally and physically aggressive girls were less likely to be rejected by their peers when their teachers liked them. Although physical aggression was most strongly associated with rejection among boys whose teachers liked them, relational aggression predicted popularity among boys whose teachers disliked them. Results suggest that teacher preferences may be a particularly important factor contributing to both physically and relationally aggressive children's social status (e.g., rejection and popularity), especially for girls. Aggr. Behav. 38:481‐493, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Sex differences in relational and overt aggression in the late elementary school years

Sex differences in relational and overt aggression among 3rd (n=176), 4th (n=179), and 5th graders (n=145) from three public schools (n=500; 278 girls) were examined. Nominations of relational aggression increased over time among 4th and 5th grade girls, but not among boys or 3rd grade girls. Among 3rd graders, boys received more nominations for relational aggression than girls. By the end of the 5th grade, girls received more relational aggression nominations than boys. There was also a significant rise in nominations of overt aggression among 5th grade girls, but not among 5th grade boys or younger boys and girls. As expected, boys were more likely than girls to be nominated for overt aggression at all grade levels. The findings are helpful for explaining inconsistencies of earlier research pertaining to sex differences in relational aggression and for advancing our understanding of the causes of aggression. Aggr. Behav. 36:282–291, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

自恋与攻击行为的关系:观点采择和共情关注的调节作用

为考察自恋对攻击行为的影响以及观点采择和共情关注在其中的调节效应,采用自恋人格问卷、人际反应指针量表和简版Buss-Perry攻击问卷,对562名大学生进行调查。结果发现:(1)自恋显著正向预测攻击行为;(2)观点采择和共情关注均可负向调节自恋与攻击行为的关系,两者都能显著抑制高自恋者的攻击行为,却无法影响低自恋者的攻击行为。因此,提高观点采择和增强共情关注是减少高自恋者攻击行为的重要途径。     

Group membership,group norms,empathy, and young children's intentions to aggress

This study assessed the effect of ingroup norms and empathy on 6 and 9‐year‐old children's (N=161) attitudes and aggressive intentions toward outgroup members. Prior to an intergroup drawing competition against an outgroup, participants' empathy was measured, and they were randomly assigned to a simulated group with a norm of direct or indirect aggression, or no aggression norm. Results indicated participants' attitudes were less positive toward the outgroup vs. the ingroup, and that both direct and indirect aggressive intentions were displayed toward the outgroup. Most importantly, the ingroup was liked less when it had an aggression norm, and the participants' aggressive intentions were not enhanced by the group aggression norm. Empathy was a significant negative predictor of direct but not indirect aggression intentions. Implications for understanding the instigation and inhibition of children's aggression intentions are discussed. Aggr. Behav. 35:244–258, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

A Cross-Cultural Investigation of Relational and Social Aggression in Female College Students from Puerto Rico and the United States

Researchers compared scores on a self-report measure of relational and social aggression using 2 groups, European American female university students (M = 20.23 years, SD = 3.88) from the mid-Atlantic region of the United States and Hispanic females from Puerto Rico (M = 19.34 years, SD = 1.26). Results indicate that cultural differences were evident in the use of relational and social aggression. The exclusively Hispanic Puerto Rican sample reported being more socially aggressive than the European American, mid-Atlantic sample. In contrast, the European American sample identified as being more relationally aggressive in their relationships than the Hispanic Puerto Rican sample. This distinction allows us to consider potential cultural differences in interpersonal relations in college-age females.     

Children’s Sympathy for Peers Who Are the Targets of Peer Aggression

Although a goal of many aggression intervention programs is to increase children's concern (often termed sympathy or empathy) for their peers as a means of ultimately reducing aggressive behavior, there are no measures specifically of children's concern for peers who are the targets of peer aggression. A participatory action research (PAR) model was used to create a culturally-sensitive measure of urban African American children's sympathy for peers who are the targets of physical aggression, relational or social aggression, verbal aggression, and property damage. In Study 1, 40 children (M (age)?=?9.71?years; 47.5 % female) were interviewed about the types of incidents that lead them to feel sympathy for a peer. Based upon these findings, the 15-item Peer Sympathy Scale (PSS) was developed. In Study 2, the PSS was administered to 517 children (M (age)?=?9.82?years; 47.4 % female) to examine the psychometric properties of the measure and to explore the association between children's sympathy for their peers and their social behavior. Greater sympathy was associated with less overt and relational aggression according to both peer and teacher reports as well as with less oppositional-defiant behavior according to teacher reports. The clinical utility of the PSS as an outcome assessment tool for social skills intervention programs is discussed.     

Physical and Relational Aggression in Early Adolescence: Associations with Narcissism,Temperament, and Social Goals

This study examined adolescent narcissism, temperament (frustration and affiliation), and social goals in association with peer‐reported physical and relational aggression (N = 384; 12–14 years). Narcissism was positively associated with dominance goals and negatively with closeness goals for peer interaction. Moreover, narcissism was positively associated with physical aggression via dominance goals for boys, and with relational aggression via dominance goals for both genders. Temperamental frustration and affiliation were both positively associated with relational aggression, but also interacted in their associations with this variable; affiliation was positively associated with relational aggression only at high levels of frustration. Supporting and extending existing research, the present findings suggest that adolescent personality and social goals are meaningfully associated with physical and relational aggression in the peer context.     

同伴地位对青少年早期不同类型攻击行为发展的影响:性别与班级规范的调节作用

采用同伴提名法,对2470名初二学生进行为期半年的追踪研究,考察两种同伴地位(社会喜好和社会支配)对三种攻击类型(身体、言语和关系攻击)发展的预测,以及性别与班级规范在其中的调节作用。多层线性分析发现:(1)社会喜好负向、社会支配正向预测个体半年后的三类攻击行为,且男生的社会喜好对关系攻击的预测作用强于女生;(2)对于男生而言,身体和言语攻击的班级规范强化个体后续的攻击行为,但关系攻击的班级规范则无显著影响;对于女生而言,身体攻击的班级规范强化个体后续的攻击行为,言语和关系攻击的班级规范强化初始攻击水平低的个体相应的攻击行为、而对于初始攻击水平高的个体表现出弱化效应;(3)班级规范还能调节社会支配对攻击行为的影响,在言语攻击规范高的班级中,社会支配对个体言语攻击的正向预测作用更强。     

Relational and Social Aggression and Reflective Processing in a University Sample

This study examined whether the dimension of reflective processing (e.g., deep and elaborative processing) was connected to the use of relational aggressions, social aggression, or both. A convenience sample of 629 college students (66% female, 91.6% White) was surveyed to ascertain the relation between self-reported relational and social aggression and deep and elaborative processing. The overall multivariate regression model was significant, Wilks’s λ = .12, F(4, 2162) = 1010.80, p < .001. Univariate results were used to show that the two predictors (relational and social aggression) significantly and strongly positively predicted the use of deep processing, R² = .81, p < .001, as well as the use of elaborative processing, R² = .87, p < .001. In summary, higher levels of social and relational aggression were related to higher levels of deep and elaborative processing. Implications for these findings are presented.     

Bidirectional associations between affective empathy and proactive and reactive aggression

Preliminary evidence indicates that affective empathy is differentially related to proactive and reactive functions of aggression. However, additional longitudinal research is needed to understand the potential reciprocal nature of these links. The current study examined the bidirectional associations between affective empathy and proactive and reactive aggression over a 6-month period during middle childhood, with attention to potential gender differences. Data were collected from 294 elementary school children (52% girls; M = 9.25 years; SD = 0.944 years) and their homeroom teachers. Affective empathy was assessed using self-reports, and teachers provided ratings of children's functions of aggression. Data were collected during the fall and spring of one academic year. Overall, results suggest some evidence that affective empathy and functions of aggression are reciprocally linked over time. As predicted, Time 1 empathy was inversely associated with Time 2 proactive aggression and Time 1 reactive aggression was inversely associated with Time 2 empathy. Contrary to expectations, Time 1 proactive aggression was marginally positively associated with Time 2 empathy, and Time 1 empathy was not significantly associated with Time 2 reactive aggression. These prospective links did not differ according to gender. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

An Examination of Network Position and Childhood Relational Aggression: Integrating Resource Control and Social Exchange Theories

Applying resource control theory and social exchange theory, we examined the social network conditions under which elementary age children were likely to engage in relational aggression. Data on classroom peer networks and peer‐nominated behaviors were collected on 671 second‐ through fourth‐grade children in 34 urban, low‐income classrooms. Nested regression models with robust cluster standard errors demonstrated that the association between children's number of relationships and their levels of relational aggression was moderated by the number of relationships that their affiliates had. Children with more peer relationships (i.e., higher network centrality) exhibited higher levels of relational aggression, but only when these relationships were with peers who had fewer connections themselves (i.e., poorly connected peers). This finding remained significant even when controlling for common predictors of relational aggression including gender, overt aggression, prosocial behavior, victimization, social preference, and perceived popularity. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for advancing the literature on childhood relational aggression and their practical applications for identifying children at risk for these behaviors.