aggression

/ag·gres·sion/ (ah-gresh´un) behavior leading to self-assertion; it may arise from innate drives
and/or a response to frustration, and may be manifested by destructive and attacking behavior, by
hostility and obstructionism, or by self-expressive drive to mastery.
Dorland's Medical Dictionary for Health Consumers. © 2007 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights
reserved.

Aggression in Adolescent Dating Relationships: Prevalence, Justification, and Health Consequences

Journal of Adolescent Health, Volume 40, Issue 4, Pages 298-304
M. Muñoz-Rivas, J. Graña, K. O’Leary, M. González
Copyright © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Abstract
Purpose
To assess the prevalence of verbally and physically aggressive behaviors in dating relationships in a
sample of Spanish adolescents.
Methods
Cross-sectional self-report data were obtained with The Modified Conflict Tactics Scale (MCTS) from a
representative sample of 2416 adolescents and young adults of both genders, between ages of 16 and
20 years.
Results
The results showed that a significantly higher percentage of women engaged in verbal aggression
(95.3% vs. 92.8%), whereas the males engaged in more severe physical aggression (4.6% vs. 2.0%)
and produced worse consequences for their female partners’ health (especially slight cuts/slight bruises,
broken nose, black eye, broken bone and requiring medical treatment/hospitalization). Justification for
aggression also revealed differential results. Whereas women said they attacked their partners while
under the influence of emotional states of intense anger (22.4% vs. 13.9%), the males said they did so
in response to aggression received (13.0% vs. 6.6%). The analysis of the group differences as a
function of age showed that verbal aggression was very high and was not different across the age
groups. In contrast, physical aggression decreased significantly across the age groups, but health
consequences became more severe with age (e.g., broken nose, black eye, broken bone, went from 1%
at 16 years to 4.5% at 20 years of age).
Conclusions
These differential tendencies of aggression typology for men and women help clinicians to develop
preventive interventions for every age, with the aim of diminishing their continuity in future
relationships.

Child Abuse Negl. 2009 Jul;33(7):451-60. Epub 2009 Jul 8. Links

Experiences of psychological and physical aggression in adolescent romantic relationships: links to

psychological distress.

Jouriles EN, Garrido E, Rosenfield D, McDonald R.

 Department of Psychology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275-0442, USA.

OBJECTIVE: This research examined links between adolescents' experiences of psychological and physical
relationship aggression and their psychological distress. Experiences of psychological and physical
aggression were expected to correlate positively with symptoms of psychological distress, but experiences
of psychological aggression were expected to partially account for the association between experiences of
physical aggression and psychological distress. In addition, psychological aggression was hypothesized to
be perceived as more unpleasant and less playful than physical aggression. METHOD: Participants were
125 high school students. Relationship aggression was assessed over an 8-week period using two
methods: (1) a retrospective method based on a single assessment at the end of the 8-week period, and
(2) a cumulative method based on multiple assessments conducted during the 8-week period.
Adolescents' appraisals of the aggression were also measured, as were their reports of symptoms of
psychological distress. RESULTS: Adolescents' experiences of psychological and physical relationship
aggression correlated positively, but inconsistently, with their symptoms of psychological distress. In
analyses considering both forms of aggression simultaneously, psychological aggression was related to
adolescents' distress, but physical aggression was not. This finding emerged across both methods of
assessing for relationship aggression. Psychological aggression was more likely than physical aggression
to be rated as unpleasant, and less likely to be attributed to the partner "playing around."
CONCLUSIONS: The study of adolescent relationship aggression will benefit by expanding the focus of
aggression to include psychological aggression as well as physical aggression, and by examining
adolescents' appraisals of the aggression they experience. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: The findings
highlight the importance of a broad view of aggression in adolescent relationships. Psychological
aggression appears to be at least as important to adolescent well-being as physical aggression in dating
relationships. In addition, it may be useful to consider how adolescents' interpret the intent of the
aggression that they experience.

PMID: 19589597 [PubMed - in process]

Adolescent female aggression

Adobe Acrobat version (PDF 10KB)
Research summary
Vol. 5 No. 3
May 2000

Question
Is the aggression of adolescent girls different from the aggression of adolescent boys?

Background
Fear of crime has considerable influence on the behaviour of people and the actions of governments. Citizens may curtail walking at night,
add security alarms to their homes and avoid driving in certain areas. Governments improve policing and introduce interventions to reduce
criminal behaviour. Fear of crime committed by youthful offenders is particularly high.
Even though the fear of crime is high, officially reported crime has actually been decreasing in recent years. Violent crime among young
offenders in Canada has also decreased during the last five years. However, since 1995 violent crime among female youths has risen
whereas the rate for male youths has fallen. While adolescent males continue to commit more crimes than adolescent females, the
accelerated rate among adolescent females raises questions as to the cause and nature of this aggression-gender gap. Improved
understanding of adolescent aggression, especially the aggressive acts committed by young women, would lead to more effective policies
and practices designed to reduce adolescent violence.

Method
A literature review on the prediction and assessment of aggression by girls between the ages of 12 to 17 was conducted. This age range
defines the ages of young offenders in Canada. Forty-six studies published between 1991 and 1999 provided information on the factors
associated with adolescent female aggression. This information was further grouped into eight categories (e.g., cognition, family, school,
etc.). The studies were all published in English but reflected an international literature that included reports from diverse countries such as
Finland and Australia.

Answer
From the literature review, it was apparent that the form of aggression can differ between boys and girls. Males are far more likely to
engage in physical aggression than females. However, recent research has broadened the definition of aggression to include verbal threats
and intimidation that is intended to disrupt social relationships. When threats and intimidation are considered, girls are found to be more
aggressive than previously thought. Moreover, evidence suggests the possibility that as some girls age, the form of aggression shifts from
verbal threats and gossip intended to harm relationships to physical aggression.
Regardless of the form of aggression displayed, there is remarkable similarity in the factors associated with aggressive behaviour for males
and females. For example, parental aggression, antisocial peers and behavioural and academic problems in school were all associated with
aggressive behaviour among girls just as these variables are found related to violence among boys. There were also a few notable
differences. Young, depressed women were nearly four times more likely to be aggressive and girls who were physically or sexually
victimised were at a higher risk for violence.

Policy implications
1. Crime prevention and treatment programs need to be attentive to the different ways that young women
express aggressive behaviour. Targeting indirect, non-physical forms of aggressive behaviour may
prevent direct, physical forms of violence.
2. Verbal aggression and intimidation among pre-adolescent girls may be helpful in identifying those who
run the risk of developing into physically violent adolescents.
3. Interventions designed to prevent female adolescent violence should target not only factors associated
with male adolescent violence but also depression and victimisation, factors specific to female aggression.

Source
 Leschied, A., Cummings, A., Van Brunschot, M., Cunningham, A., & Saunders, A. (2000). Female
Adolescent Aggression: A Review of the Literature and the Correlates of Aggression (User Report No.
2000-04). Ottawa: Solicitor General Canada.

For further information

James Bonta, Ph.D.
Solicitor General Canada
340 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0P8
Tel (613) 991-2831
Fax (613) 990-8295
e-mail jim.bonta@ps-sp.gc.ca
Abstract:

Previous studies have repeatedly found that aggression causes various internalizing and externalizing
problems. Despite the robust relationship, exactly how aggression causes these problems remains unclear,
although it is plausible to postulate that this occurs both directly and indirectly (via other behavioural factors).

One possible indirect factor might be the aggravation of peer relations. The poor peer relations of aggressive
children could make them isolated psychologically or physically from peers, which in turn might result in
depressive or disruptive problems.

This study examined the relationships between three types of aggression and peer relations in Japanese
elementary school children.

The three aggression types comprised reactive-expressive (i.e., verbal and physical aggression), reactive-
inexpressive (e.g., hostility), and proactive-relational aggression (i.e., aggression that can break human
relationships, for instance, by circulating malicious rumours).

Participants were 1581 children in grades 4 to 6 (752 boys and 829 girls), all of whom completed the
Proactive-Reactive Aggression Questionnaire for Children to measure three types of aggression and the Peer
Relation Questionnaire to measure peer relations (mutual understanding, self-disclosure, and similarity of
taste) and number of friends.

ssssss Hierarchical regression analyses of the data showed that higher scores of relational aggression were
significantly associated with higher scores of all of the peer relations and the number of friends, and that
higher scores of inexpressive aggression were significantly associated with lower scores of all except for self-
disclosure in the peer relations.

These findings suggest that among the three types of aggression, relational aggression leads to the best
friendship in both dyadic relations and the number of friends, whereas inexpressive aggression to the poorest
friendship.