Effects of Martial Arts Exercise on Children’s Prosocial and Aggressive Behaviors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Social rejection elicits profound feelings of distress. From an evolutionary perspective, the best way to alleviate this distress is to behave prosocially, minimizing the likelihood of further exclusion. Yet, examples ranging from the playground to the pub suggest rejection commonly elicits aggression. Opposing theoretical perspectives and discordant empirical results have left a basic question unanswered: does rejection more commonly elicit prosocial or aggressive behavior? We conducted three meta-analyses (one with studies measuring aggressive behavior; one with studies measuring prosocial behavior; and one with studies measuring both aggressive and prosocial behavior; N = 3864) to quantify: (1) the extent to which social rejection elicits prosocial or aggressive behaviorand (2) potential moderating effects on these relations. Random-effects models revealed medium effects such that social rejection potentiated aggressive behavior (k = 19; d = 0.41, p < .0001) and attenuated prosocial behavior (k = 7; d = 0.59, p < .0001), an effect that remained consistent even when participants were given the option to behave prosocially or aggressively (k = 15; d = 0.71, p < .0001). These results cast doubt on the theory that rejection triggers prosocial behavior, and instead suggest it is a robust elicitor of aggression. Statement of Relevance: To our knowledge, these meta-analyses are the first to directly test whether social rejection elicits aggressive or prosocial behavior. By including a comprehensive collection of both published and unpublished research studies, and examining a wide variety of previously untested moderators, we show that social rejection robustly elicits aggressive behavior and inhibits prosocial behavior. Additionally, we demonstrate that aggressive behavior following social rejection is not simply a function of limited choices in response options. In fact, aggressive behavior was evoked even when the option to engage in prosocial behavior was provided. Furthermore, we conducted a comprehensive narrative review of the neural mechanisms underlying social rejection-elicited aggressive and prosocial behavior to supplement primary analyses. Overall, we believe that our work makes a critical theoretical contribution to the field.

Introduction: Puppets are an important educational and therapeutic agent, and an impetus for creative expression in children. Therefore, educators in kindergarten should be familiar with puppets as a medium which is able to stimulate the development of the children. The main goal of this study was to answer the question: are there differences in prosocial and aggressive behavior in preschool children in relation to the frequency of the teacher’s use of puppets in her educational work? Materials and methods: Twenty teachers in kindegartens assessed the level of prosocial or aggressive behavior in 248 children, from kindergartens in the Split-Dalmatia County, aged 5.5 to 7 years (each teacher assessed the children in the educational groups of children in the study themselves). The children were placed in an experimental (in which the educator often uses a paper doll) or a control group (in which the educator very rarely used a paper doll). Teachers assessed the behavior of the children in their own educational group in the kindergarten using a scale for assessing prosocial and aggressive behavior in children (Žužul and Vlahovic-Štetić). Results: Results of the variance analysis showed that children in the experimental and control groups differed significantly in the prevalence of aggressive and prosocial behavior. Aggressive behavior was significantly more frequent in the control group and prosocial in the experimental group. In both groups, these two types of behaviors were negatively and significantly correlated. Discussion: The main finding of this research suggests that regular use of different methods of using puppets in educational work in kindergartens is correlated with the appearance of two forms of social behavior of children (prosocial and aggressive). These results can provide guidance for practical work, with a potential desirable impact on children, preferably using puppets in educational work. Conclusion: Children in the experimental group (more frequent use of puppets in educational work), were assessed by the teachers as more prosocial and less aggressive than in the control group of children. The relationship between prosocial and aggressive behavior in children is negative and statistically significant in the experimental, as well as in the control group.

The aim of the present study is to explore the relationships between cognitive–behavioral patterns of perfectionism in the context of competitive sport and both prosociality and aggressiveness in a sample of adolescents competing in federated sports. A cross-sectional and non-randomized study was designed using a selective methodology on a sample of adolescents (N = 234) competing in federated sports. Scales to assess aggressiveness, perfectionism, prosocial behavior, and competitiveness were administrated. The results show that as age increases, prosocial behaviors increase and aggressive behaviors and competitiveness decrease, while there was no one significant perfectionist tendency. Competitiveness showed a direct relationship with aggressive (positive) and prosocial behaviors (negative). Self-oriented perfectionistic behavior showed a direct and significant relationship with prosocial behaviors, but no significant relationship with aggressive responses. As P-SP and P-OD tendencies increased, significantly smaller links were shown with prosocial behaviors, but greater links were shown with aggressive behaviors. A path (mediation) model showed a positive and predictive relationship with aggressive behaviors and a negative relationship with prosocial altruistic behaviors. The negative influence of criticism from significant figures in their environment and unrealistic expectations about their performance are relevant to difficulties in self-regulating social relationships in adolescents. Hence, it is a challenge to promote prosocial resources (as a protective value for aggressive behaviors) in the face of the early angst of young athletes, who put their maturity to the test under conditions of high pressure and demands. The present study continues to reinforce the line drawn on perfectionism and prosocial development in young people in sports contexts where young people, measured early on according to their performance, can accentuate and deepen competitive tendencies that alter their adaptive and self-regulatory capacities, as well as their psychosocial projection.

Aggressive and prosocial behaviors have often been addressed as opposing constructs, namely in their opposite association with subjective wellbeing. Alternatively, the Resource Control Theory assumes that individuals may resort to both aggressive and prosocial behaviors as strategic ways to obtain individual and social resources, which are particularly relevant in adolescence. This bistrategic use of social behaviors may be particularly noticeable when considering the overt and indirect forms of aggression but these forms have not been considered before in relation to prosociality. The current work explored profiles based on prosocial and aggressive behavior (i.e., relational, reputational and overt) and compared those profiles on different dimensions of subjective wellbeing. Participants were 350 students aged 11 to 18 years old (Mage = 13.40) attending the 7th through 9th school grades, of which 191 (54.6%) were female. They reported on the practice of overt aggression, relational aggression, reputational aggression, and prosocial behavior and their emotional, social, and psychological wellbeing. Using latent profile analyses, typical and bistrategic profiles were found. Mean comparisons further showed that participants in these two profiles differed in all forms of aggressive behavior but not in the practice of prosocial behavior nor emotional, social, and psychological wellbeing, which might have been driven by prosociality. When considering the forms of aggression in a community and age-diverse sample, adolescents seem resourceful in responding to their inter and intrapersonal developmental needs while maintaining their wellbeing. Promoting prosocial behavior as a valid alternative to aggression may have to be rooted in the intention with which these acts are practiced so that both are openly seen as ways of sustaining not only the others' but also one's own welfare.

Links between self-reported media violence exposure and teacher ratings of aggression and prosocial behavior among German adolescents

With the popularization of short-form video platforms, excessive use of short-form videos among preschool children has become increasingly prevalent. However, the mechanisms underlying its impact on children's social behaviour development remain unclear. This study aims to examine the relationship between the overuse of short-form videos and prosocial behaviour and aggressive behaviour in preschool children, as well as the mediating roles of empathy and emotional regulation. Parents of 799 preschool children were invited to complete the Short-Form Video Overuse Scale, Empathy Questionnaire, Emotional Regulation Scale, Prosocial Behaviour Scale and Aggressive Behaviour Scale. The results revealed that: (1) Short-form video overuse was negatively correlated with prosocial behaviours and positively correlated with aggressive behaviours; (2) Short-form video overuse influenced prosocial and aggressive behaviours through the mediating role of empathy (it is noteworthy that short-form video overuse was positively correlated with empathy, while higher empathy levels were simultaneously associated with both more prosocial and aggressive behaviours); (3) Short-form video overuse also affected prosocial and aggressive behaviours through the mediating role of emotion regulation. These findings contribute to understanding the multifaceted effects of short-form video overuse on children's behavioural development and highlight the need for parents and educators to address preschool children's video usage.

Why are empathic children more liked by peers? The mediating roles of prosocial and aggressive behaviors

Because Turkish early adolescents learn and practice many essential prosocial behaviors (i.e., helping, sharing) within the family context, it is important to examine whether early adolescents' prosocial behaviors toward parents at age 10 (Time 1) were related to their later prosocial and aggressive behaviors at age 13 (Time 3) via perceived parental psychological control at age 12 (Time 2). Participants were 355 early adolescents (Mage = 9.89 years, SD = 0.32; 51% girls) from Türkiye at Time 1. Early adolescents reported their prosocial behaviors toward mothers and fathers at age 10, perceived maternal and paternal psychological control at age 12, and prosocial and aggressive behaviors at age 13. Mediation analyses showed that early adolescents' greater prosocial behaviors toward parents were significantly related to less perceived psychological control, which, in turn, was related to less altruistic and reactive prosocial behaviors but related to greater reactive and proactive aggressive behaviors. Importantly, these associations were robust across boys and girls, and all indirect effects were statistically significant. The findings inform theories that suggest interindividual stability in youth's levels of prosocial behavior and reciprocal relations between parenting and youth behaviors but extend such findings to a non-Western, relatively collectivist-oriented, predominantly Muslim culture. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

BackgroundPast research has shown links between both children’s aggressive behaviour and a lack of prosocial behaviour to later maladaptation. Both types of behaviours have also been identified as crucial in children’s social and emotional development and later (mal)adaptation. However, little is known about the way they predict each other over time.MethodsWe utilised a large, ethnically diverse, longitudinal population sample of girls and boys (N = 1,334) to examine the bidirectional cross-lagged links between aggressive and prosocial domains of behaviour from age seven to eleven. Teacher, parent and child self-reports were utilised to assess aggressive behaviour and prosocial behaviour.ResultsThe results revealed that aggressive behaviour measured one year predicted decreases in prosocial behaviour in the following year. Conversely, prosocial behaviour did not predict changes in aggressive behaviour in the subsequent year. Furthermore, peer difficulties were examined and found to be an important mediator of the link between aggressive and prosocial behaviour. Specifically, peer difficulties mediated the links between aggressive behaviour and prosocial behaviour one year later, particularly during the first three years of school attendance.ConclusionsImplications of the findings for the design of intervention strategies to reduce children’s aggressive behaviour are discussed.

The influence of solitary and cooperative violent video game play on aggressive and prosocial behavior

Exploring sibling prosocial and aggressive behavior in young people exposed and not exposed to intimate partner violence.

The interplay of emotional instability, empathy, and coping on prosocial and aggressive behaviors

Materialism plays a critical role in adolescent behavioral development, yet whether it affects prosocial and aggressive behaviors and the internal mechanism remains unknown. Therefore, this longitudinal research examined the relationships between adolescent materialism and prosocial and aggressive behaviors, and tested the mediating effect of empathy. In 2015, we recruited 543 adolescents from four junior high schools in Beijing, China (284 girls, 259 boys; M = 11.27 years, SD = 0.51). The participants completed the measures of materialism and demographic information at the initial time point, completed the measure of empathy about one year later, and completed the measures of prosocial and aggressive behaviors after about another year. The hypotheses were tested using a structural model using maximum likelihood estimation. The mediating effects were estimated by taking 1000 bias-corrected bootstraps. The results revealed that materialism was associated with aggressive behavior directly and positively, but had no significant correlation with prosocial behavior. Materialism had an indirect and negative correlation with prosocial behavior via empathy, while no indirect effect of materialism on aggressive behavior was found. The findings add to our knowledge of the dehumanizing nature of materialism by revealing its effect on adolescent behavioral development, as well as the underlying mechanism.

Different kinds of behavior and traits may gradually manifest during the childhood; among such behaviors are pro-social and aggressive behaviors. The present study examined two developmental traits (callous-unemotional) and their role in the relationship between pro-social and aggressive behavior. Participants are school pupils in Nkpor; a South Eastern town in the Anambra State of Nigeria. All the participants were of the Igbo ethnic group. They include 65 primary school pupils comprising of 30 primary six pupils ( M age = 10.50, SD = 1.07) and 35 primary two pupils ( M age = 6.02, SD =.66). Data for pro-social, aggressive behavior and callous-unemotional traits (CU) were gathered from the teacher’s report. Results revealed that CU traits were negatively correlated with pro-social but positively correlated with aggression. Pro-social behavior was also negatively correlated with aggressive behavior. Hierarchical regression showed that pro-social behavior was not a significant predictor of aggressive behavior when CU traits were not controlled, while CU traits predict aggressive behavior with or without pro-sociality. The discussion focused on callous and uncaring traits as an important mediating mechanism that could help researchers understand early developmental trajectories of pro-social behaviors.

ABSTRACT. The goal of this study was to examine whether moral affect, moral cognition, negative emotionality, and attribution biases independently predicted adolescents’ prosocial and aggressive behavior in adolescence. A total of 148 adolescents completed self-report measures of prosocial and aggressive behavior, moral affect, moral cognition, negative emotionality, and attribution biases. Although in general all 3 factors (emotional, moral, and social cognitive) were correlated with adolescent social behavior, the most consistent independent predictors of adolescent social behavior were moral affect and cognition. These findings have important implications for intervention and suggest that programs that promote adolescent perspective taking, moral reasoning, and moral affect are needed to reduce aggressive behavior and promote prosocial behavior.