Casey A. Pederson

Bidirectional Associations between Peer Victimization and Functions of Aggression in Middle Childhood: Further Evaluation across Informants and Academic Years

The current 3-wave study examined bidirectional associations between peer victimization and functions of aggression across informants over a 1-year period in middle childhood, with attention to potential gender differences. Participants included 198 children (51% girls) in the third and fourth grades and their homeroom teachers. Peer victimization was assessed using both child- and teacher-reports, and teachers provided ratings of reactive and proactive aggression. Cross-classified multilevel cross-lagged models indicated that child-reports, but not teacher-reports, of peer victimization predicted higher levels of reactive aggression within and across academic years. Further, reactive aggression predicted subsequent increases in child- and teacher-reports of peer victimization across each wave of data. Several gender differences, particularly in the crossed paths between proactive aggression and peer victimization, also emerged. Whereas peer victimization was found to partially account for the stability of reactive aggression over time, reactive aggression did not account for the stability of peer victimization. Taken together with previous research, the current findings suggest that child-reports of peer victimization may help identify youth who are risk for exhibiting increased reactive aggression over time. Further, they highlight the need to target reactively aggressive behavior for the prevention of peer victimization in middle childhood.

Associations between physical and relational forms of peer aggression and victimization and risk for substance use among elementary school-age youth

ABSTRACT This study examined associations between physical and relational forms of aggression and victimization and risk for willingness to engage in substance use and actual use in a sample of 231 (50% male) second- through fourth-grade students (mean age = 8.3 years). Physical aggression was more strongly associated with risk for substance use outcomes than physical victimization. Neither relational aggression nor victimization were linked to risk for substance use. Specifically targeting physical aggression for the prevention of early substance use among elementary school-age youths appears to be warranted.

The Role of Negative Life Events in Comorbid Reactive Aggression and Marijuana Use Initiation among Latino Adolescents

Compelling epidemiological evidence shows that marijuana use is highly comorbid with aggressive behavior, particularly among adolescents and young adults; yet the causal nexus between these 2 phenomena remains elusive. To better understand the comorbidity of specific subtypes of aggression and marijuana use, this study evaluated associations between proactive and reactive aggression and marijuana use initiation and examined whether negative life events (NLEs) partially accounted for the link between reactive aggression and marijuana use initiation in a sample of Latino adolescents (N = 144, 54% male, mean age = 16.25 years). Results indicated that approximately 43% of participants had tried marijuana. NLEs were associated with both marijuana use initiation and reactive aggression, but were unrelated to proactive aggression, thereby providing support for similar environmental correlates for reactive aggression and marijuana use. Further, a test of indirect effects suggested that NLEs partially accounted for the link between reactive aggression and marijuana use initiation, with NLEs accounting for 14% of the variance in this association. Implications for intervention and future directions for research are discussed.

The Role of Functions of Aggression in Associations Between Behavioral Inhibition and Activation and Mental Health Outcomes

ABSTRACT While the behavioral acitivation system (BAS) has been most consistently linked to externalizing behaviors, the behavioral inhibition system (BIS) has been more closely related to internalizing outcomes. Proactive and reactive aggression have demonstrated a similar pattern of association, with proactive aggression more closely linked to externalizing behavior and reactive aggression more consistently linked to internalizing symptoms. Despite theoretical links, few studies have examined associations between these constructs. Accordingly, the current study examined associations between the BAS and BIS and proactive and reactive aggression, and the role of proactive and reactive aggression in the link between the BAS and BIS and mental health outcomes. The BAS was associated with both proactive and reactive aggression, while the BIS was uniquely related to reactive aggression. Both proactive and reactive aggression appear to be playing a role in associations between the BAS and indicated mental health outcomes. Implications and future directions are discussed.