Abstract
The present study employed parallel analyses to develop a greater understanding of the relationships between infant socialization (maternal sensitivity and home quality), early childhood self-control (attentional focusing, inhibitory control, gratification delay, and self-control), and measures of reactive-overt and relational aggression, assessed from ages 8.5 to 15 years. Self-reported, mother reported, and observational data were employed from a national sample of N = 1364 children (the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Early Child Care and Youth Development Study). Findings provided evidence that positive infant socialization during the first two years of life positively predicted self-control that in turn negatively predicted both reactive-overt and relational aggression at age 8.5 years. In addition, socialization factors maintained direct effects on developmental changes in both measures of aggression at age 10.5 years (relational), 11.5 years (reactive-overt and relational), and 15 years (reactive-overt and relational). Self-control also negatively predicted developmental changes in both measures of aggression at 11.5 years. These findings highlight the long-term developmental effects of positive infant socialization experiences on the developmental course of reactive-overt and relational aggression, but also the salience of self-regulatory capacities in understanding the etiology of and ongoing developmental changes in aggressive behaviors.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 101316 |
Journal | Aggression and Violent Behavior |
Volume | 49 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 1 2019 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:United States Department of Health and Human Services. National Institutes of Health. Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development: Phase I, 1991-1994 [United States]. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2018-06-25. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR21940.v6. United States Department of Health and Human Services. National Institutes of Health. Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development: Phase II, 1995-1999 [United States]. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2018-06-25. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR21941.v5. United States Department of Health and Human Services. National Institutes of Health. Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development: Phase III, 2000-2004 [United States]. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2018-06-25. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR21942.v6. United States Department of Health and Human Services. National Institutes of Health. Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development: Phase IV, 2005-2007 [United States]. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2018-06-25. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR22361.v5. The content of this chapter is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the funding agencies.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Ltd
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pathology and Forensic Medicine
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychiatry and Mental health