Abstract
Physical aggression has its origin very early in development, but no studies to date have examined physical aggression trajectories starting before the age of 1.5 years. This study examined whether cognition plays a role in the development of physical aggression from infancy onward. In a sample of 182 mother-child dyads (94 boys; 88 girls), child physical aggression was assessed by maternal report using the Physical Aggression Scale for Early Childhood at 12, 20, and 30 months. Children performed cognitive tasks measuring inhibitory control and attention, and mothers rated children’s vocabulary at 12 and 30 months. Results showed that differential development of physical aggression already starts at 12 months of age: low-stable, low-increasing, moderate-decreasing and high-stable trajectory groups were identified. Inhibitory control, attention and vocabulary at 12 months and development of these abilities from 12 to 30 months were selectively related to the likelihood of following the low-increasing and moderate-decreasing trajectories compared to the low-stable physical aggression trajectory. This study is the first to show that specific aspects of cognition and cognitive development are related to differential physical aggression development from infancy onward.
Highlights
Studies examining children during preschool and school age indicate that delays in cognitive development are related to higher levels of physical aggression and externalizing behavior problems (Schoemaker et al, 2013; Girard et al, 2014)
Our study focused on cognitive functions, which have been proposed as mechanisms explaining brain-behavior relations: dysfunctions in neurobiology are reflected in problems in cognitive functioning, which lead to behavior problems (Bishop and Snowling, 2004; Beauchamp and Anderson, 2010)
This is the first study investigating the role of early cognition in the development of physical aggression from infancy to toddlerhood
Summary
Studies examining children during preschool and school age indicate that delays in cognitive development are related to higher levels of physical aggression and externalizing behavior problems (Schoemaker et al, 2013; Girard et al, 2014). We examined the relations between the development of physical aggression and three cognitive functions during infancy and toddlerhood: inhibitory control, vocabulary, and attention. It has been suggested that the development of language enables children to communicate with their social environment about their desires and needs, resulting in less frustration and fewer behavior problems (Keenan and Shaw, 1997) In line with this hypothesis, both language comprehension and production have been negatively related to externalizing behavior problems and physical aggression during preschool and school age (Estrem, 2005; Menting et al, 2011; Petersen et al, 2013). It was expected that higher chances of following the moderate-increasing or high-increasing/highstable trajectories of physical aggression would be related to a less optimal development of cognition between age 12 and 30 months
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