Reactive aggression (RA) is an angry response to perceived provocation. Proactive aggression (PA) is a pre-meditated act used to achieve some goal. This study test hypotheses that (1) individuals high in RA and PA will differ in resting levels of autonomic arousal and (2) RA will be related to emotional and behavioral problems, while PA only to behavioral problems.
Parents of 68 children (age 6–13) reported on child symptoms, reactive/proactive aggression, and behavior problems. Resting heart rate (HR), skin conductance (SC), and HR variability (HRV) were measured in 42 of the children. RA was significantly related to decreased HRV and a trend for decreased SC, while PA was significantly related to increased SC and HRV. RA was significantly related to increased internalizing behaviors and attention deficits, while PA was significantly related to increased hyperactivity/impulsivity and delinquent behavior problems.
Findings support a distinction between child reactive (hot-tempered) and proactive (cold-tempered) aggression in autonomic, emotional (i.e., internalizing problems), and behavioral (i.e., attention deficits, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and delinquent behavior) functioning, and are discussed in relation to theories of antisocial behavior.
Based on the distinction between defensive and predatory aggression in the animal literature (e.g., Moyer, 1976), two corresponding dimensions of aggression in children have been identified (Vitiello and Stoff, 1997). Reactive aggression (RA) is a visceral defensive response to perceived threat or provocation within the context of associated intense fear, anger, or frustration (i.e., hot-tempered). Proactive aggression (PA), on the other hand, involves a relatively non-emotional display of aggression used to intimidate others or to obtain a specified goal (i.e., cold-tempered). It is more often pre-meditated and manipulative.
Proactive and reactive aggressive behaviors are often highly correlated in children, and this correlation has been explained in two ways. First, the two functions often co-occur within aggressive individuals; second, questionnaires may confound form with function, such that common properties of physical/overt forms of aggression may be captured rather than the motivational distinctions between reactive and proactive aggression (Card and Little, 2006 and Polman et al., 2007). Despite the intercorrelation, several investigators have found the distinction to be reliable and to be related to a variety of social and cognitive variables (Kempes et al., 2005 and Merk et al., 2005). For example, using confirmatory factor analysis, Poulin and Boivin (2000) found that a two-factor model of proactive and reactive aggression fit the data better than a one-factor model, and each factor contributed uniquely to predictions of peer reports of the child's aggression. Further, the two-factor model has been found to be consistent across gender and age (Kempes et al., 2006). As such, it may be important to understand the different risks and causal pathways of these two factors, RA and PA. The current study was undertaken to examine the autonomic, emotional, and behavioral distinctions between these two functions of child aggressive behavior.
In sum, these findings suggest the importance of distinguishing between reactive and proactive aggression when examining antisocial behavior in children. The findings of this study suggest that RA can be distinguished from PA along emotional, attentional, and autonomic indices. Though speculative, it may be possible that problems with emotion regulation and stress reactivity may be related to deficits in frontal lobe functioning, as reflected in decreased SC and HRV. Such individual differences in frontal functioning can then interact with situational cues by influencing one's actions in response to specific situations. Thus, individuals with a tendency to respond to stress with an angry or defensive response, for example, may be more likely to use RA when faced with provocation or frustration. Conversely, PA may be characterized by increased vagal or parasympathetic control of the heart (reflected in increased HRV) and heightened SC level, which may reflect increased frontal lobe activity and subsequent emotional control. Nonetheless, PA is associated with hyperactivity/impulsivity, which may interfere with effortful control of aggressive impulses or learning from punishment. Thus, individuals with a tendency to value instrumental over social goals, but with low effortful control, may be more likely to use PA when presented with the possibility of instrumental gain. A focus on using aggression for instrumental gain may also reflect a risk for chronic and persistent behavioral difficulties. Such distinctions may not only allow for a more detailed understanding of the mechanisms of aggressive behavior, but may lead to more effective interventions specifically targeting deficiencies associated with each function of aggression.
