Family correlates of children's social and physical aggression with peers: Negative interparental conflict strategies and parenting styles

Abstract

This investigation examines whether negative interparental conflict strategies (stonewalling, triangulation, verbal aggression, and physical aggression) and parenting styles are related to social and physical aggression with peers for children followed longitudinally from age 9 to 10 (N = 256). Parents reported on negative conflict strategies and parenting styles at the beginning of the study and teachers rated children's social and physical aggression with peers when children were in the 3rd and 4th grades. Structural equation modeling demonstrated that, for girls, mothers' negative interparental conflict strategies were positively associated with both social and physical aggression with peers. Mothers' negative conflict strategies were not related to boys' social and physical aggression at school, fathers' negative conflict strategies were not related to aggression for either gender, and no relations emerged for parenting styles. These results offer partial support for a same-gender modeling hypothesis and suggest that girls' social and physical aggression at school may be related to watching mothers resolve marital disputes by engaging in triangulation, stonewalling, and verbal and physical aggression with partners.

Undergraduate Omani Students’ Identity and Perceptions of Parenting Styles

“…These variations can also be attributed to the inconsistency in the indicators used to examine each one of the parenting styles. Consequently, Underwood, Beron, Gentsch, Galperin, and Risser (2008) indicated that more specific parenting processes need to be used when examining the effects of parents' behavior on children's outcomes. This is true especially with some existing measures that confound the indicators of authoritarian parenting styles by including corporal punishment, while other studies focus only on the demanding aspects of being authoritarian.…”

Digit ratio, emotional intelligence and parenting styles predict female aggression

“…Future studies should include additional variables in predictive models. These include personality variables such as agreeableness (Gleason, Jensen-Campbell, & Richardson, 2004), anxiety and anger (Wittmann, Arce, & Santisteban, 2008); family variables such as parental relationships (Underwood et al, 2008) and parent-child attachment (Michiels, Grietens, Onghena, & Kuppens, 2008); behaviors such as videogaming (Willoughby, Adachi, & Good, 2012); and genetics (Tackett, Waldman, & Lahey, 2009). …”

“…Nelson and Crick (2002) and Nelson, Hart, Yang, Olsen, and Jin (2006) found parental control (a dimension of authoritarianism) related to girls' social aggression. However, multiple studies have failed to identify such relations (e.g., Underwood, Beron, Gentsch, Galperin, & Risser, 2008). Underwood et al (2008) maintain that measurement error may account for these failures because parenting has been assessed using self-report, which may not be valid.…”

“…However, multiple studies have failed to identify such relations (e.g., Underwood, Beron, Gentsch, Galperin, & Risser, 2008). Underwood et al (2008) maintain that measurement error may account for these failures because parenting has been assessed using self-report, which may not be valid. Kawabata, Alink, Tseng, van Ijzendoorn, and Crick (2011) addressed the inconsistent findings by conducting metaanalyses with data from 48 studies.…”

“…This addresses Underwood et al's (2008) concern that self-report may not be valid for measuring parenting. Future research might glean a balanced view by including parenting assessments via parental self-report alongside children's report.…”