Race, Gender, and Aggression: The Impact of Sociocultural Factors on Girls (From Girls and Aggression: Contributing Factors and Intervention Principles, P 85-99, 2004, Marlene M. Moretti, Candice L. Odgers, and Margaret A. Jackson, eds. -- See NCJ-204960)

• NCJ Number: 204966
• Author(s): Margaret A. Jackson
• Date Published: 2004
• Length: 15 pages
• Sale Source: Kluwer Academic / Plenum Publishers
• Publication Format: Book Chapter
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This chapter reviews three studies that focused on the sociocultural factors that may contribute to immigrant and refugee girls' vulnerability to being both victims and perpetrators of aggression.

Abstract

Overall, the studies show that the girls live within a sociocultural environment that does not respect their rights and needs, which makes them vulnerable to being both victims and perpetrators of aggression. The studies' recommendations pertain to the development of programs and services that increase self-esteem and opportunities for achievement and recognition. The studies found that the same systemic processes of discrimination that made immigrant and refugee girls vulnerable to being victims of aggression were also linked to their becoming aggressive themselves. The studies' findings also show that the dominant culture's treatment of the girls as inferior because they are members of a minority race was internalized by the girls such that they believed they were inferior. The girls believed there were hierarchies of value that the dominant socioculture attributed to various minority groups, but they were viewed by the girls more as power-based hierarchies than explicitly racial hierarchies. Being exposed to conflicting values under multicultural expectations created stress within the girls that made them more vulnerable to the development of aggressive behavior. Many of the girls interviewed mistrusted school authorities when it came to support and assistance; and they did not view their families as a source of help in dealing with troubling issues regarding sexuality and bullying. The first study involved interviews and focus groups with 59 immigrant and refugee girls. The second study interviewed eight immigrant and refugee girls who were either on probation at the time of the interview or had been on probation in the past. The third study examined the perceptions of service providers who worked closely with marginalized girls. 26 references