1st Edition

Handbook of Child and Adolescent Aggression

Edited By Tina Malti, Kenneth H. Rubin Copyright 2018

    Presenting cutting-edge work from leading scholars, this authoritative handbook reviews the breadth of current knowledge on aggression from infancy through adolescence. The volume explores the forms and functions of aggression and the multiple factors that contribute to its emergence, development, and consequences, including genetic and biological influences, temperament, family dynamics, peer relations, and social inequality. It provides up-to-date perspectives on problems such as disruptive and defiant behaviors, bullying (including cyberbullying), social aggression, and youth violence, and examines relations between aggression and normative social–emotional and social-cognitive development. It also discusses the opposite end of the spectrum, including kindness and prosocial behaviors. Identifying important implications for practice and policy, contributors describe effective approaches to screening, assessment, and intervention in family, school, community, and clinical settings.

    Foreword, Tracy Vaillancourt
    I. Foundations of Aggression, Trajectories, and Antecedents
    1. Aggression in Childhood and Adolescence: Definition, Theory, and History, Tina Malti & Kenneth H. Rubin
    2. Clinical Classifications of Aggression in Childhood and Adolescence, Paul J. Frick & Tatiana M. Matlasz
    3. Developmental Trajectories of Aggression Subtypes: From Early to Late Childhood, Jamie M. Ostrov, Kristin J. Perry, & Sarah J. Blakely-McClure
    4. Behavior Genetics of Aggression, Mara Brendgen, Frank Vitaro, & Michel Boivin
    5. Psychophysiology of Aggression, Susan Branje & Hans M. Koot
    6. Temperament and Aggression, Christina C. Moore, Julie A. Hubbard, & Megan K. Bookhout
    7. Social–Emotional Development and Aggression, Tina Malti & Ju-Hyun Song
    8. Social-Cognitive Development and Aggression, Jennifer E. Lansford
    II. Aggression in Context
    9. Parenting, Parent–Child Relationships, and the Development of Aggression during Childhood and Adolescence, K. Lee Raby & Glenn I. Roisman
    10. Aggression and Functioning with Peers, William M. Bukowski & Frank Vitaro
    11. Aggression and Morality in Childhood and Adolescence, Tina Malti, Tyler Colasante, & Marc Jambon
    12. Social Networks and Aggression, Jelle J. Sijtsema & Tiina J. Ojanen
    13. Cyberbullying, Marion K. Underwood & Sheri A. Bauman
    14. Poverty, Social Inequality, and Aggression, Tama Leventhal, Véronique Dupéré, & Margaret C. Elliott
    III. Interventions and Policy Implications
    15. Measuring Social–Emotional Correlates of Aggression in Children and Adolescents, Tina Malti, Antonio Zuffianò, & Connie Cheung
    16. Youth-Focused Intervention for Severe Aggression, John E. Lochman, Caroline L. Boxmeyer, Brendan Andrade, & Pietro Muratori
    17. Family-Based Treatments for Aggressive Problem Behavior, Elizabeth A. Stormshak & S. Andrew Garbacz
    18. Preventing Aggression and Youth Violence in Schools, Shelley Hymel & Dorothy L. Espelage
    19. International Perspectives on Bullying Prevention, Christina Salmivalli
    20. Can Positive Youth Development Programs Prevent Youth Violence?: The Role of Regulation of Action and Positive Social Engagement, Nancy G. Guerra
    21. Challenges and Priorities for Researchers, Kenneth H. Rubin & Tina Malti
    22. Challenges and Priorities for Practitioners and Policymakers, Sarah Lindstrom Johnson, Sabina Low, & Catherine P. Bradshaw

    Biography

    Tina Malti, PhD, is Professor of Psychology and Director of the Laboratory for Social–Emotional Development and Intervention at the University of Toronto. She serves as Associate Editor of Child Development and as Membership Secretary (2014–2020) of the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development. She is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science. Dr. Malti is the recipient of New Investigator awards from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation, the Society for Research on Adolescence, and the International Society for Research on Aggression. Her research interests include the origins, pathways, and consequences of aggression and kindness in childhood and adolescence. She creates and implements interventions to enhance social–emotional development and reduce aggression and exposure to violence in children facing multiple forms of adversity.

    Kenneth H. Rubin, PhD, is Professor of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology and Founding Director of the Center for Children, Relationships, and Culture at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is a Fellow of the American and Canadian Psychological Associations, the Association of Psychological Science, and the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development (ISSBD). Dr. Rubin is a recipient of Distinguished Contribution awards from the Society for Research in Child Development and the ISSBD, the Mentor Award in Developmental Psychology from the American Psychological Association, and the Pickering Award for Outstanding Contribution to Developmental Psychology in Canada from Carleton University. His research focuses on peer and parent–child relationships and the origins and developmental course of social and emotional adjustment and maladjustment in childhood and adolescence.

    "This volume provides a comprehensive perspective on the development of aggressive behavior problems, as well as prevention and intervention strategies. It captures the expanding body of research in this area, which extends to behavioral genetics, psychophysiology, temperament, classifications, and subtypes--and which goes beyond the individual child to consider parenting, family, peer, social network, and digital contexts. The book offers a much-needed empirical foundation for practice, programming, and policies, from prevention of school violence and bullying to targeted approaches for supporting highly aggressive children and their families."--Debra Pepler, PhD, CPsych, Distinguished Research Professor of Psychology, York University, Canada

    "Chock-full of information, theory, empirical findings, and insight, this is an encyclopedic handbook for serious scholars. The easy-to-digest introduction by Malti and Rubin wonderfully summarizes the scientific knowledge in the chapters to come. Especially noteworthy is the chapter by Malti and Song on social–emotional development, which articulates a nuanced theory of transactional forces that drive development. Also exceptional is the chapter by Lansford on social-cognitive development, which covers related territory in remarkably accessible fashion. Kudos to the editors!"--Kenneth A. Dodge, PhD, Pritzker Professor of Public Policy and Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University

    "Until now, there has been no exhaustive analysis of extant research on the etiology, correlates, and outcomes of childhood aggression. This handbook fills this gap, including contributions from a 'who’s who' of aggression researchers. The 22 chapters cover developmental considerations and outcomes of aggression, contexts that influence aggressive behavior, and research-based interventions. The volume is a 'must read' for graduate students and researchers, as well as practitioners working with aggressive youth."--Susan M. Swearer, PhD, Willa Cather Professor and Chair of Educational Psychology, University of Nebraska–Lincoln

    "The most up-to-date and comprehensive handbook on child and adolescent aggression. The volume reviews genetic and psychophysiological factors, temperament and social–emotional processes, and key contextual influences, including parents, peers, and social networks. Importantly, individual, family, and school interventions are reviewed, and there are special chapters on cyberbullying and on bullying prevention. I can confidently recommend this handbook to all researchers, teachers, and practitioners in psychology, psychiatry, public health, and other disciplines who are interested in child and adolescent aggression. They will learn a lot from it, as I did."--David P. Farrington, PhD, Emeritus Professor of Psychological Criminology, Cambridge University, United Kingdom
    -A valuable educational resource, and indeed, readers of this book--whether reading it in part or in its entirety--will find value in the level of explanation and thoroughness of research reviewed in each chapter….The handbook is a welcome addition as it addresses the complex developmental issue of childhood aggression more comprehensively than what has been done previously in general handbooks on social development. Highly recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty and professionals.--Choice Reviews, 3/1/2019ƒƒThe authors have brilliantly pulled together the most complete volume of information currently available from a wide range of expert contributors on this subject, advancing the field by leaps and bounds. As a mental health professional who treats aggressive children and adolescents in the clinic setting, I have nothing but thanks and admiration for the authors who recognized the need to publish such a valuable and timely book. I thoroughly recommend this as the essential go-to handbook for anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of the current research and practical application strategies for treating child and adolescent aggression. *****!--Doody's Review Service, 12/14/2018