Aggressive behavior in children's dolls' house play

The present study addressed the question of whether there are gender and age differences in aggressive behavior when it is studied as the spontaneous expression of mental contents and not as the result of immediate social interaction. This study also investigated whether aggression, in terms of mental content, is related to temperamental aspects. Aggressive behaviors were examined in make‐believe play, in relation to age, gender, and temperament in a near‐ecological context, i.e., the Dolls' House Play. The participants, 55 boys and 47 girls, subdivided into three age levels (4 years–4 years and 6 months; 5–6 years; and 7 years and 6 months–8 years and 6 months) were requested to represent what happens in their family 1) during Mealtimes; 2) at Bedtime; 3) on the Saddest day; and 4) the Happiest day; their Dolls' House Play was then recorded. Children's temperaments were measured with the TABC‐Teachers' form [Martin, The Temperament Assessment Battery for Children, Brandon, VT: Clinical Psychology Publishing, 1998]. Data analysis was conducted considering aggressive behaviors in their distinct expressions—physical, verbal, direct, and indirect. Results revealed no statistical differences between boys and girls when all aggressive behaviors were compounded. However, when the distinct types of aggressiveness were considered, boys presented statistically higher levels of physical aggression than girls did. Moreover, boys and girls reacted with different types of aggression in the different emotional contexts created by the four episodes. Few age differences were observed. Surprisingly, there was a significantly greater presence of indirect verbal aggressiveness in younger children. With respect to temperament, a higher level of negative emotivity was significantly linked to a greater degree of aggressive behaviors in some of the episodes. In conclusion, this paper confirms gender differences in the type of aggressive behavior children display even in the absence of any immediate social interaction, which might itself trigger aggression. Aggr. Behav. 30:504–519, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.