NCJ Number
211074
Journal
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 34 Issue: 4 Dated: August 2005 Pages: 335-345
Date Published
August 2005
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This study attempted to extend existing research and examined the contributions of maternal psychological control and dispositional social evaluative anxiety to the use of social aggression in adolescents; gender differences were also examined in self-reported social and overt aggression.
Abstract
Although prior studies have shown that elevated levels of indirect/relational/social aggression are associated with child and adolescent maladjustment, relatively few have examined the factors that may contribute to their use, particularly among early adolescents. This study extended existing research by showing that maternal psychological control and dispositional social evaluative anxiety were uniquely associated with early adolescent social and overt aggression. Study participants consisted of 745, 10-14 year-old students (male and female) attending sixth and seventh grades of 3 middle schools in a suburban district in central Texas. Findings demonstrate consistent gender differences in overt aggression. Boys were more likely than girls to engage in elevated levels of overt-aggression, to be classified as overly aggressive, and to report the combined use of overt and social aggression. The study contributes to the limited knowledge of the processes involved in early adolescent social and overt aggression by showing that dispositional social evaluative anxiety and maternal psychological control play important roles in these outcomes. References