183700 Aggression and perceptions of parenting among urban public middle school students

Monday, October 27, 2008

Kantahyanee Murray, PhD , Department of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Denise L. Haynie, PhD , DESPR/Prevention Research Branch, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, MD
Tina L. Cheng, MD, MPH , School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Background: Adolescent aggression is a major social problem in the U.S. linked to violence and violence-related injury. Understanding the relationship between parenting and early adolescent aggression provides important insights for developing prevention interventions. This study explored the association between protective parenting behaviors and aggression in an urban, predominately African-American early adolescent sample.

Methods: A total of 209 sixth graders completed questionnaires at two time points about their aggressive behaviors. Participants also reported on their perceptions of their parent's parenting style (support/behavioral control and psychological control) and aggression-specific parenting practices (aggression-avoidance parenting practices and aggression-endorsing parenting practices).

Results: Adjusted logistic regression results indicated that moderate levels of aggression-avoidance parenting practices were associated with a decreased likelihood of aggression at Time 2 (OR= 0.57, CI: 0.35-0.96). Parenting practices interacted with parenting style such that adolescents reporting moderate levels of aggression-avoidance parenting practices and low parent support/behavioral control were less likely to engage in aggression at Time 2 (OR= 0.55, CI: 0.31-0.97). Similarly, adolescents reporting moderate levels of aggression-avoidance parenting practices and high parent psychological control were less likely to engage in aggression at Time 2 (OR= 0.55, CI: 0.32-0.94).

Conclusions: Study results suggest that parent support for aggression avoidance strategies protected early adolescents from aggression. In particular, parent support for aggression avoidance strategies ameliorated the tendency toward aggressive behavior when parent support/behavioral and psychological control were at their least protective levels. This study suggests that violence prevention parent interventions should emphasize the importance of aggression-avoidance parenting practices.

Learning Objectives:
1.) Understand the distinction between parenting style and aggression-specific parenting practices. 2.) Obtain knowledge of the relationship between parenting factors (parenting style and aggression-specific parenting practices) and early adolescent aggression. 3.) Identify issues relevant to developing early adolescent aggression prevention interventions that include parent education components.

Keywords: Violence Prevention, Adolescent Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: 1.) Doctoral student for past 6 years at the University of Maryland College Park, Public and Community Health Program, School of Public Health. 2.)Predoctoral Research Training Award Fellow (2004-2007), Prevention Research Branch, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development,worked on school-based violence prevention study & analyzed data for dissertation research study.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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