Specific Patterns of Family Aggression and Adolescents’ Self- and Other-Directed Harm: The Moderating Role of Personality

Abstract

The aim of the current study was to explore distinct patterns of family aggression and their relationship to youths’ self- and other-directed harm, as well as the moderating role of personality. Participants included 184 adolescents (mean age of 14) from the community and in treatment. Family aggression and self- and other-directed harm were assessed by youth and/or parent reports on various scales. Youth personality was assessed by self-report on the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire—Simplified Wording Form (MPQ-SF). A cluster analysis revealed three distinct patterns of family aggression: 1) Witness + Victim, 2) Youth as Witness, and 3) Low Family Aggression. Youth who reported being both victims of and witnesses to family aggression (Witness + Victim) reported the highest levels of self- and other-directed harm compared to Youth in the other two clusters. There was also a significant interaction between temperamental Negative Emotionality (NEM) and family aggression cluster, in that there was a dose effect of family aggression on other-directed harm at high levels of NEM. In contrast, at low levels of NEM, family aggression was not related to other-directed harm. These results suggest that specific patterns of family aggression have distinct relationships with youths’ self- and other-directed harm. Further, these results highlight the role of individual differences like NEM as risky or protective depending on the family context.