تداوم پرخاشگری فیزیکی در اوایل دوران کودکی: بررسی بزهکاری و تخلف، بهداشت روانی و تفاوت های فرهنگی مادران

Purpose To examine the persistence of physical aggression in preschoolers and associated correlates (i.e., socio-demographic, socioeconomic, criminality, parenting practices, maternal mental health). Methods One-year follow-ups are completed with 240 mothers and their preschool children (boys and girls) from the Vancouver Longitudinal Study on the Psychosocial Development of Children. A series of structural equation models are examined. Results Maternal psychological symptoms, juvenile delinquency, and adult offending are associated with higher levels of physical aggression in their offspring. Children of non-Caucasian mothers and those born outside of North are less physically aggressive. Cultural differences in the correlates of physical aggression were identified. Conclusions Maternal past delinquency, current adult offending, and mental health are important factors in the development of children’s physical aggression. The findings suggest that there are multiple pathways leading to chronic physical aggression, which may be culturally-based. Cultural differences should be taken into account when developing programs and intervening with families of children with behavioral problems.

Criminology is progressively searching earlier in the life course to explain the development of antisocial and criminal behavior. Developmental criminologists propose that early life events and circumstances can have cumulative consequences on an individual’s behavioral development (e.g., Loeber et al., 2008 and Moffitt, 1993). Similarly, Cullen (2011) suggests that criminology should focus on the developmental periods prior to adolescence, stressing that infants emerge from the womb with individual differences and such differences are carried on to the next developmental stages. The focus on these very early individual differences, especially those associated with later violent behavior, is emphasized by longitudinal studies (e.g., Caspi et al., 2002). Genetic or biological studies may provide information on the magnitude of the influence of antisocial and violent behavior (for reviews, Glenn and Raine, 2014, Moffitt, 2005 and Rhee and Waldman, 2002), but do not necessarily explain the underlying process by which the risk for violence develops over time. Recent research shows that known risk factors for violence are predictive of childhood aggression as early as 6 and 12 months old (Hay et al., 2011 and Hay et al., 2014), while criminogenic risk factors are associated with patterns of physical aggression in preschoolers as young as 36 months old (Lussier, Corrado, et al., 2011, Tzoumakis et al., 2012 and Tzoumakis et al., 2014). Moreover, recent theoretical advances suggest that theories of crime need to incorporate the development of temperament and associated behavioral problems in infancy, toddlerhood, childhood, adolescence, and across adulthood (DeLisi and Vaughn, 2014 and Walters, 2014). The period from infancy to early childhood is therefore important for theoretical development, and empirical evidence continues to indicate that antisocial behavior originates during this time (e.g., Farrington, 2005 and Moffitt, 2003). The early childhood/infancy period is also vitally important for policy reasons. For instance, a recent meta-analysis shows that early intervention programs (i.e., family/parent training) are effective not only in decreasing antisocial behavior in childhood, but also have positive long term effects on delinquency and offending in adolescence and adulthood (Piquero, Farrington, Welsh, Tremblay, & Jennings, 2009). The effectiveness of early intervention is therefore critical, particularly since a substantial amount of research indicates the financial costs of delinquency and crime are extremely high (see Cohen, 1998 and Cohen et al., 2010). Further understanding of the processes occurring with children and their parents during infancy and early childhood, particularly from a criminological perspective, can help to improve prevention, intervention, and approaches to studying the origins of antisocial behavior. Moreover, as many communities become increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse, understanding these processes among different cultural, ethnic, and immigrant groups is also important. The current study explores the development of physical aggression during this early childhood period, and considers a neglected area in current research along these lines, cultural differences.

The current study focused on children’s physical aggression during early childhood, examined a number of correlates potentially influencing aggression during this period, and importantly, identified cultural differences in these correlates. This developmental period is critical because those children who persist in high levels of physical aggression after this point are the ones at risk for later delinquency and offending (e.g. Broidy et al., 2003). However, it is also important because early childhood interventions are effective at preventing these long-term consequences. This study showed that maternal mental health, juvenile delinquency, and current offending can influence children’s aggression as early as the preschool years. Moreover, the study examined cultural differences, a neglected aspect of prior longitudinal studies as well as studies on intergenerational transmission of antisocial behavior and aggression. Culturally divergent correlates of physical aggression were identified, suggesting that there are multiple pathways leading to chronic physical aggression, which may be influenced by cultural differences. The cultural differences identified are important for policymakers and clinicians to consider, especially regarding program development and implementation. Parent training programs in particular have been found to be effective and have long-term preventative effects on antisocial behavior and delinquency (e.g., Piquero et al., 2009), but these programs would need to be tailored to different cultural practices. For instance, a focus on encouraging the use of positive parenting practices during the early childhood years among specific groups of immigrant mothers might be useful. The current study underlines the importance of cultural awareness in the context of intervention, since there may be culturally based differences in the development of children’s aggression, as well as the factors influencing it. This study raises several questions concerning the experience of immigration and how this may influence children’s behavioral development, parenting practices, and maternal mental health. Maternal depression and isolation may be unique contributing factors to children’s aggression for immigrant mothers. Therefore, encouraging the use of public mental health services among this population, and developing community outreach programs to target these women should be seriously considered. When considering increasing globalization, more research should consider mothers’ culture of origin, and how risk factors for aggression and delinquency operate for those who are experiencing motherhood in a new country and cultural context. Comparative and qualitative studies of immigrant mothers to identify mental health needs and differences in parenting would be useful to clarify some of these questions. Future studies will examine how these cultural differences influence physical aggression over a longer follow-up period, particularly after school entry.