The association between childhood maltreatment, mental health problems, and aggression in justice‐involved boys

Abstract

The link between childhood maltreatment and adolescent aggression is well documented; yet, studies examining potential mechanisms that explain this association are limited. In the present study, we tested the association between childhood maltreatment and adolescent aggression in boys in juvenile justice facilities (N = 767) and examined the contribution of mental health problems to this relationship. Data on childhood maltreatment, mental health problems, and aggression were collected by means of self-report measures and structural equation models were used to test mediation models. We found that mental health problems mediated the link between maltreatment and aggression. Results demonstrated different pathways depending on the type of aggression examined. The association between childhood maltreatment and reactive aggression was fully mediated by a variety of mental health problems and for proactive aggression the association was partially mediated by mental health problems. We also found that reactive and proactive aggression partially mediated the association between maltreatment and mental health problems. These findings suggest that a transactional model may best explain the negative effects of childhood trauma on mental health problems and (in particular reactive) aggression. In addition, our findings add to the existing evidence that reactive and proactive aggression have different etiological pathways.

Childhood Maltreatment Is Associated With Aggression Among Male Juvenile Delinquents in China: The Mediating Effects of Callous-Unemotional Traits and Self-Control

“…Consistent with previous studies showing a close relationship between childhood maltreatment and aggression ( Connor et al, 2004 ; Chen et al, 2012 ; Kolla et al, 2013 ; Hoeve et al, 2015 ), we also find a significant positive correlation between the two factors. More importantly, the results not only support the relationship between them but also demonstrate the specific way in which childhood maltreatment affects aggression.…”

“…Child maltreatment is broadly defined as acts of commission, words or overt actions that cause harm (i.e., emotional, physical, and sexual abuse) and acts of omission, failure to provide for a child’s basic needs or protect a child from harm (i.e., emotional and physical neglect) ( Leeb et al, 2008 ). Numerous studies find a strong relationship between childhood maltreatment and aggression ( Chen et al, 2012 ; Hoeve et al, 2015 ). Maltreated children are found to show more aggressive behaviors reported by their peers, their teachers, their counselors, and themselves ( Shields and Cicchetti, 1998 ; Bolger and Patterson, 2001 ; Finzi et al, 2001 ; Weder et al, 2009 ; Alink et al, 2012 ; Shackman and Pollak, 2014 ; Dackis et al, 2015 ).…”

Gene-Gene-Environment Interactions of Serotonin Transporter, Monoamine Oxidase A and Childhood Maltreatment Predict Aggressive Behavior in Chinese Adolescents

“…Maltreatment of a child includes sexual abuse (SA), physical abuse (PA), emotional abuse (EA) and neglect (Miller et al, 2013 ). Such maltreatment is known to be a risk factor for adolescent aggressive behavior (Ford et al, 2012 ; Hoeve et al, 2015 ) and is associated with suicidal behavior (Carli et al, 2011 ), delinquency and violent criminal behavior in adults (Miller et al, 2013 ; Carli et al, 2014 ) as well as other psychological dysfunctional attributes in adulthood (Boyda and McFeeter, 2015 ). First, a lot of work has shown that emotional and mental health outcomes for adolescents who have experienced childhood abuse are worse than for those who did not.…”

Is there a female cycle of violence after exposure to childhood maltreatment? A meta-analysis

“…For adolescents, a number of studies have found evidence that CM predicts a higher risk of involvement in a variety of aggressive, antisocial, or violent behaviors (e.g. Maas et al ., 2008; Wilson et al ., 2009; Hoeve et al ., 2015). In this research, both multi-type maltreatment and physical abuse have been regarded as the most toxic types of adversity with regard to precipitating juvenile delinquency (Maas et al ., 2008).…”