Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Box 842018, Richmond, VA, 23284-2018, USA.
Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599-3270, USA.
J Youth Adolesc. 2020 Jun;49(6):1309-1327. doi: 10.1007/s10964-020-01204-2. Epub 2020 Feb 1.
Although there is empirical evidence supporting associations between exposure to violence and engaging in physically aggressive behavior during adolescence, there is limited longitudinal research to determine the extent to which exposure to violence is a cause or a consequence of physical aggression, and most studies have not addressed the influence of other negative life events experienced by adolescents. This study examined bidirectional relations between physical aggression, two forms of exposure to violence-witnessing violence and victimization, and other negative life events. Participants were a sample of 2568 adolescents attending three urban public middle schools who completed measures of each construct every 3 months during middle school. Their mean age was 12.76 (SD = 0.98); 52% were female. The majority were African American (89%); 17% were Hispanic or Latino/a. Cross-lagged regression analyses across four waves of data collected within the same grade revealed bidirectional relations between witnessing violence and physical aggression, and between witnessing violence and negative life events. Although physical aggression predicted subsequent changes in victimization, victimization predicted changes in physical aggression only when witnessing violence was not taken into account. Findings were consistent across sex and grades. Overall, these findings highlight the need for interventions that break the connection between exposure to violence and aggression during adolescence.
尽管有实证证据支持暴露于暴力环境与青少年时期身体攻击行为之间的关联，但纵向研究有限，无法确定暴露于暴力在多大程度上是身体攻击的原因或结果，而且大多数研究并未涉及青少年经历的其他负面生活事件的影响。本研究考察了身体攻击、目睹暴力和受害两种形式的暴力暴露以及其他负面生活事件之间的双向关系。参与者是参加三所城市公立中学的 2568 名青少年的样本，他们在中学期间每 3 个月完成一次每个结构的测量。他们的平均年龄为 12.76（标准差=0.98）；52%是女性。大多数是非洲裔美国人（89%）；17%是西班牙裔或拉丁裔。在同一年级内收集的四波数据的交叉滞后回归分析显示，目睹暴力与身体攻击之间，以及目睹暴力与负面生活事件之间存在双向关系。尽管身体攻击预测了随后的受害变化，但只有在不考虑目睹暴力的情况下，受害才会预测身体攻击的变化。这些发现在性别和年级上都是一致的。总体而言，这些发现强调了需要干预措施来打破青少年时期暴露于暴力和攻击之间的联系。
