Parent Aggression and Youth Externalizing and Internalizing Behaviors: Stability and Mutual Influence

<p>Parent aggression exists on a continuum with corporal punishment at one end and abuse at the other. There is still controversy as to whether any kind of parent aggression toward an adolescent contributes to externalizing and internalizing behaviors. Relative to what is known about parent aggression during childhood, much less is known about parent aggression toward adolescents from a systemic and developmental perspective. This study explored the stability and mutual influence of parent aggression and adolescent externalizing and internalizing behaviors. The study found that the constructs were stable over time, and that with this sample population, parental physical and emotional aggression co-occurred with internalizing and externalizing behaviors at both points in time. Neither form of parent aggression showed a longitudinal association with youth externalizing or internalizing behaviors. The current study found a mutual influence between parent aggression and youth maladaptive behaviors, thus adding to the growing but limited literature considering both directions of influence. Finally, the study found a temporal association between the quality of relationships with family at T1 and youth internalizing behaviors at T1 and T2, suggesting that family relationships remain important predictors of adolescent emotional wellbeing.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Child and Family Studies

Year

2013

Author dc:creator

• Sheedy, Ann L.

Contributors dc:contributor

• D. Bruce Carter

• adolescents
• corporal punishment
• emotional aggression
• externalizing
• internalizing
• parent aggression
• Family, Life Course, and Society

Repository record dc:identifier

https://surface.syr.edu/cfs_etd/69

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:surface.syr.edu:cfs_etd-1068