The influence of exposure to violence on adolescents' physical aggression: The protective influence of peers.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

This study examined the degree to which peers can serve as a protective factor to mitigate the negative effects of exposure to violence (i.e., victimization, witnessing violence) on adolescents' physical aggression. Four specific dimensions of peer influence were examined - friends' support for nonviolence, friends' support for fighting, peer pressure for fighting, and friends' delinquent behavior.

Methods

Analyses were conducted on four waves of data collected every 3 months (i.e., fall, winter, spring, summer) from a predominantly African-American (78%) sample of 2575 sixth, seventh, and eighth graders attending three public middle schools in the United States. The sample was 52% female, with a mean age of 12.3 years (SD = 1.00).

Results

Findings for re

SUBMITTER: Coleman JN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8513536 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature