The Childrens Research Initiative: Integrative Approaches - CRI: A Longitudinal Study of Relational Aggression in Preschoolers

University Of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis MN

Investigators

Abstract

ABSTRACT A Longitudinal Study of Relational Aggression in Preschoolers Nicki R. Crick Longitudinal investigations have demonstrated that childhood aggression is one of the best known social predictors of future maladjustment. Although many important advances have been made in our understanding of aggression, much of this knowledge has been gained through an empirical and theoretical focus on aggressive boys only. The lack of attention to aggressive girls has likely occurred because the study of physical aggression has been emphasized, a form of aggression that is more characteristic of boys than of girls. In an attempt to rectify this inequity, a relational form of aggression has been recently identified that has been shown to be more typical of girls than physical forms. Although great strides have been made in our understanding of relational aggression, the significant gaps in our knowledge are too numerous to outline. One of the most critical gaps is the lack of attention to the early development of relational aggression and its consequences, information that is crucial for informing early prevention and intervention efforts. The proposed study was designed to address this issue through the longitudinal study of preschool-age children. Four objectives will be addressed: (1) to evaluate normative, developmental changes in relational and physical aggression in young children; (2) to assess gender differences in observed relational aggression among young children; (3) to assess the stability of individual differences in physical and relational forms of aggression for both boys and girls; and (4) to compare the concurrent and future social-psychological adjustment status associated with relational aggression for young children of both sexes. A total of 80 preschoolers (40 girls; 40 boys) between the ages of 2 and 4 years will serve as participants. During each of four assessment periods (Year One: Time 1 & 2; Year Two: Time 3 & 4) naturalistic observations plus teacher-, peer-, and self-assessments of children's social behavior (relational aggression, physical aggression, and prosocial behavior) and social-psychological adjustment (social adjustment, internalizing difficulties, and externalizing problems) will be conducted at the preschools. A variety of statistical techniques will be used to evaluate the proposed hypotheses including descriptive analyses, linear growth modeling, ANOVA, hierarchical multiple regression, and path analyses. Findings of the proposed research have great potential for enhancing our understanding of a vastly underrepresented group, aggressive girls, and for drawing attention to theoretical shortcomings that have promoted the lack of attention to this group. Without the ability to assess and identify aggressive behavioral problems among young girls, we cannot understand the etiology and developmental trajectories of later adjustment problems for females. Early prevention and intervention efforts are also impossible without adequate information to identify at-risk girls during their childhood years.