Forms of aggression, peer relationships, and relational victimization among Chinese adolescent girls and boys: roles of prosocial behavior.

Shujun Wang,Shihua Huang,Chengfu Yu,Shuangju Zhen,Dongping Li,Wei Zhang

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01264

Abstract

Through a sample of 686 Chinese adolescents (mean age = 13.73 years; 50% girls), we examined the compensatory and moderating effects of prosocial behavior on the direct and indirect associations between forms of aggression and relational victimization mediated by peer relationships among adolescent girls and boys. The results indicated that only adolescent girls’ relationally aggressive behaviors could be directly linked with their experiences of relational victimization, and both relationally and overtly aggressive adolescent boys and girls might be more often rejected by their peers, which, in turn, could make them targets of relational aggression. Next, we found that prosocial behavior indirectly counteracts the effects of aggression on relational victimization through reducing adolescents’ peer rejection and promoting adolescents’ peer attachment. In addition, relationally aggressive girls with high levels of prosocial behavior might be less rejected by peers; however, they might also have lower levels of peer attachment and be more likely to experience relational victimization. Last, adolescent boys scored higher on risks, but lower on the protective factors of relational victimization than girls, which, to some degree, might explain the gender difference in relational victimization. Finally, we discussed the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.

Highlights

After attracting significant attention from researchers in the late 1980s, peer victimization has been consistently identified as a common problem related to both internalizing and externalizing problems as well as other negative developmental outcomes (e.g., Seeley et al, 2009) across countries.In addition to the overt form of peer victimization (e.g., Olweus, 1978), the significance of an empirical focus on relational victimization has been recognized and strongly emphasized (Crick et al, 2001)
The results showed that after controlling for the effects of relational and overt aggression, prosocial behavior indirectly reduced relational victimization by avoiding peer rejection and promoting peer attachment for both adolescent girls (Model 1) and boys (Model 2), suggesting that it might play a compensatory role in the negative links from forms of aggression to relational victimization for both genders
The moderating effects of prosocial behavior might be more complicated for relationally aggressive girls

Summary

Introduction

In addition to the overt form of peer victimization (e.g., Olweus, 1978), the significance of an empirical focus on relational victimization has been recognized and strongly emphasized (Crick et al, 2001). This sub-type of peer victimization involves being the targets of peers’ relational aggression, a type of behavior aimed at harming others by intentionally damaging or manipulating their interpersonal relations or by threatening to destroy these relations (Crick et al, 2001). A study of relational victimization might provide a better understanding of girls’ social development (Crick and Grotpeter, 1996) since, unlike the studies of overt victimization indicating that the victims were mainly boys, studies of relational victimization have found that the phenomenon was prevalent among both genders (e.g., Crick and Nelson, 2002; Putallaz et al, 2007).

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Discussion

Conclusion