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Rough-and-Tumble Play and the Development of Physical Aggression and Emotion Regulation: A Five-Year Follow-Up Study

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Abstract

This is a follow-up to a study demonstrating that rough-and-tumble play was related to physical aggression in the preschool years. Fathers reported on the frequency of father-child rough-and-tumble play interactions, and the degree to which fathers were dominant in the play dyad was observed and coded from play interactions. In this follow-up study, school-aged children’s physically aggressive behaviors and emotion regulation abilities were assessed with questionnaires 5 years later. Higher frequencies of father-child rough-and-tumble play in the preschool years were associated with more physical aggression and worse emotion regulation 5 years later for children whose fathers were less dominant, over and above the effects of physical aggression in the preschool years. Rough-and-tumble play was unrelated to these measures among children whose fathers were more dominant during play. This study shows that early rough-and-tumble play continues to be related to children’s psychosocial adjustment over time, and that the effect remains moderated by the quality of the father-child relationship during play.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a doctoral scholarship to JLF and a grant to DP from the Fonds Québécois de Recherche sur la Société et Culture, and a Research Scientist award to JRS from the Fonds pour la Recherche en Santé du Québec.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, McGill University, 1205 Dr. Penfield ave, Montreal, QC, H3A 1B1, Canada

    Joseph L. Flanders & Robert O. Pihl

  2. Department of Psychology, Concordia University, Sherbrooke St. West, Montreal, QC, H4B 1R6, Canada

    Melissa Simard

  3. School of Psychoeducation, University of Montreal, PO Box 6128, Centre Ville Station, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada

    Daniel Paquette, Sophie Parent & Frank Vitaro

  4. Department of Psychiatry, University of Montreal and Ste-Justine Hospital Research Center, 3175 chemin Côté Ste-Catherine, Montreal, QC, H3T 1C5, Canada

    Jean R. Séguin

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  1. Joseph L. Flanders
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Correspondence to Joseph L. Flanders or Jean R. Séguin.

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Portions of this research were presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research on Child Development, April 2009, Denver, Co, USA.

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Flanders, J.L., Simard, M., Paquette, D. et al. Rough-and-Tumble Play and the Development of Physical Aggression and Emotion Regulation: A Five-Year Follow-Up Study. J Fam Viol 25, 357–367 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-009-9297-5

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