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Aggressive behavior in the home as a function of the age and sex of control-problem and normal children
Insights
Childhood aggressive behaviors, including physical and verbal aggression, decrease with age but show minimal sex differences. Referral status significantly impacts behavior rates, with consistent age-behavior relationships across groups.
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Aggressive behavior in children is a significant concern.
- Understanding factors influencing aggressive behavior is crucial for intervention.
- Previous research has explored age, sex, and referral status, but findings vary.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how age, sex, and clinic-referred status explain variations in children's aggressive behavior.
- To analyze different types of aggressive and aversive behaviors.
- To examine age and sex differences in behavior rates across different groups.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study design.
- Inclusion of 223 children (137 males, 86 females) aged 3-13.
- Observation of unstructured family interactions in the home.
- Measurement of total aversive behavior (TAB), physical aggression (PAB), verbal aggression (VAB), passive-dependent behavior (PDB), and disobedience (DSB).
Main Results:
- Referral status was a significant predictor for all measured behaviors.
- Age was significant for all behaviors except verbal aggression (VAB).
- Sex was only significant for physical aggression (PAB).
- Significant interactions between age and group were found for TAB, PDB, and DSB.
- Behavior rates differed between groups, but age and sex relationships to behavior were consistent across groups.
- Decreasing behavior rates with age (except VAB) align with prior preschool research.
- Observed sex differences were less pronounced than typically reported.
Conclusions:
- Clinic-referred status is a key factor differentiating aggressive behavior patterns in children.
- Aggressive behaviors generally decrease with age, with some exceptions like verbal aggression.
- The study highlights the complexity of aggressive behavior, influenced by age, sex, and clinical referral status.
- Findings suggest a need for nuanced understanding of developmental trajectories and sex-specific patterns in childhood aggression.
Abstract:
This cross-sectional study investigated the ability of age, sex, and clinic-referred or nonreferred status of children to account for variance in the performance of aggressive behavior. Two clinic-referred groups and one normative group of children, composed of 137 males and 86 females between the ages of 3 and 13, were observed during unstructured family interactions in the home setting. Measures of aggressive/aversive child behavior included a composite total aversive behavior (TAB) score, a physical aggression (PAB) score, a verbal aggression (VAB) score, a passive-dependent behavior (PDB) score, and a disobedience (DSB) score. The total regression model and referral status were significant for each of these dependent variables. Age was significant for each variable except VAB, and sex was significant only for PAB. Significant age X group interactions were obtained for TAB, PDB, and DSB. Rates of behavior clearly differentiated groups, but the relationship of age and sex of child to behavior rates was the same across groups. Decreases in all behaviors with increasing age, except for VAB, replicate findings from previous studies in preschool settings. However, the meager sex differences failed to replicate more robust findings generally reported in previous research.