An integrative model is proposed for understanding the development of physical and relational aggression in early and middle childhood. The central goal was to posit a new theoretical framework that expands on existing social-cognitive and gender schema models (i.e., Social Information-Processing Model of Children's Adjustment [N. R. Crick & K. A. Dodge, 1994] and the Schematic-Processing Model of Sex Role Stereotyping [C. L. Martin & C. F. Halverson, 1981]). The proposed model suggests several individual- and group-level effects and the available evidence for each of these hypotheses is discussed. The ways in which the proposed model may guide future research in the field are presented.

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Objective The development and course of the subtypes of peer victimization is a relatively understudied topic despite the association of victimization with important developmental and clinical outcomes. Moreover, understanding potential predictors, such as peer rejection and emotion regulation, in early childhood may be especially important to elucidate possible bi-directional pathways between relational and physical victimization and rejection. The current study (N = 97) was designed to explore several gaps and limitations in the peer victimization and peer rejection literature. In particular, the prospective associations between relational and physical victimization and peer rejection over the course of 3.5 months during early childhood (i.e., 3- to 5- years-old) were investigated in an integrated model. Method The study consisted of 97 (42 girls) preschool children recruited from four early childhood schools in the northeast of the US. Using observations, research assistant report and teacher report, relational and physical aggression, relational and physical victimization, peer rejection, and emotion regulation were measured in a short-term longitudinal study. Path analyses were conducted to test the overall hypothesized model. Results Peer rejection was found to predict increases in relational victimization. In addition, emotion regulation was found to predict decreases in peer rejection and physical victimization. Conclusions Implications for research and practice are discussed, including teaching coping strategies for peer rejection and emotional distress.

A secondary analysis of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development was conducted to test the mechanisms by which relational aggression in third grade was associated both directly and indirectly with relational victimization in sixth grade. A large sample (N = 1,035; 522 girls; M = 8.3 years old; SD = 0.23) and multiple informants (teacher, child, and parent report) and methods were used to test several theoretically driven hypotheses. Our path analysis model suggested evidence for both direct and indirect pathways consistent with the sequential social process model of peer harassment. Relational aggression was significantly associated with future relational victimization even after controlling for physical aggression and gender. Loneliness mediated the direct association between relational aggression and peer victimization. A second model testing the reverse direction of effect revealed that relational victimization in third grade predicted relational aggression in sixth grade and was associated with loneliness and depressive symptoms in fifth grade, but there was no evidence for any of the indirect pathways.

The cue reactivity paradigm has been used extensively in laboratory settings to study cue-specific craving responses to drug-related cues. However, this procedure has been used in only one study to assess craving in the drug user’s natural environment (Warthen & Tiffany, 2009). The present study combined cue-reactivity with ecological momentary assessment (CREMA) to evaluate smokers’ cue reactions in natural environments as a further validation and extension of this procedure. A total of 66 daily cigarette smokers carried a personal digital assistant (PDA) and had the opportunity to respond to 32 cue reactivity sessions across eight days. Cues were presented through in vivo and photographic modes. During in vivo sessions, participants handled and looked at a cigarette or neutral object, while during photographic sessions, participants looked at a smoking related or neutral photograph on the PDA. Craving and mood were assessed before and after cue presentations. Cues were also presented in the laboratory both before (Lab I) and after (Lab II) the eight-day CREMA procedure. Participants completed over 90% of cue-reactivity sessions delivered with the CREMA procedure. Analyses revealed robust cue-reactivity in the natural environment and laboratory across both modes of presentation. Photographic cues elicited significantly stronger cue-reactivity effects than in vivo cues across all sessions. The CREMA procedure has been shown to elicit robust cue-reactivity effects across multiple modes of cue presentation. Results support the use of the CREMA procedure for examining cue-specific craving in the natural environment of smokers.

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A short-term longitudinal study examined relational and physical aggression and deceptive behavior among 120 preschool-aged children (M = 44.36 months old, SD = 11.07). Multiple informants and methods (i.e., observational, teacher reports) were used. Evidence for discriminant validity of the observations of aggression subtypes was found. For example, observations of relational aggression were more highly associated with teacher reports of relational aggression than teacher reports of physical aggression. Observed relational aggression was significantly associated with concurrent and prospective increases in deceptive behavior, even after controlling for gender and observed physical aggression. In addition, observed relational aggression was a unique significant predictor of concurrent deception, above and beyond teacher reports of aggression subtypes, which provides important support for the utility of the observational methods.

The current meta-analytic review examined the experimental literature to quantify the causal effect of acute alcohol consumption on self-reported and observed indicators of male-to-female general, sexual, and intimate partner aggression. Database and reference list searches yielded 22 studies conducted between 1981 and 2014 that met all criteria for inclusion and that were subjected to full text coding for analysis. Results detected a significant overall effect (d = .36), indicating that male participants who consumed alcohol evidenced greater aggressive behavior toward females while completing a subsequent laboratory aggression paradigm than male participants who received no alcohol. We found homogeneity across all categories of potential moderator variables. Results further indicated that alcohol resulted in comparable increases of male-to-female sexual (d = .32) and intimate partner (d = .45) aggression. Further research is required to draw meaningful conclusions about individual and situational factors that may interact with acute alcohol consumption to produce the highest levels of risk.