Abstract
Despite ample evidence supporting the association between relational and overt aggression and social-psychological adjustment problems, little is known about how this association occurs among adolescents in non-Western cultures. The present study examined whether potentially traumatic peer experience, such as forms of peer victimization (relational and overt), influences the longitudinal association between forms of aggression (relational and overt) and social-psychological adjustment problems (internalizing and externalizing) among Japanese adolescents. Gender differences in the mediation of peer victimization were also examined. Two hundred and eighty-one Japanese students from nine classrooms and two public middle schools participated in this study (Time 1 M age = 12.72, SD = .45, 50% female). Data included three time points one year apart (Grades 7, 8, and 9). Results of structural equation modeling indicated that higher relational aggression in Grade 7 was associated with more internalizing and externalizing problems in Grade 9. Notably, relational aggression was associated with internalizing problems, but not with externalizing problems, through relational victimization for both boys and girls. Overt aggression in Grade 7 was significantly associated with externalizing problems in Grade 9, but overt victimization did not mediate this association. On the other hand, overt aggression did not predict internalizing problems in Grade 9, but the indirect effect of overt victimization was found in this association. The findings inform us of the need to intervene with at-risk youth, regardless of gender, who use relational aggression, experience potentially traumatic relational victimization, and subsequently exhibit high levels of mental health and behavioral problems in Japan.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data Availability
Data are available upon request.
References
Achenbach, T. M. (2019). International findings with the Achenbach System of empirically based Assessment (ASEBA): Applications to clinical services, research, and training. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 13(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-019-0291-2.
Achenbach, T. M., & Rescorla, L. A. (2001). Manual for the ASEBA School-Age forms & profiles. University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth, & Families.
Allen, J. J., & Anderson, C. A. (2017). Aggression and violence: Definitions and distinctions. In P. Sturmey (Ed.), The Wiley handbook of violence and aggression (pp. 1–14). John Wiley and Sons, Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119057574.whbva001.
Best, D. L., & Puzio, A. R. (2019). Gender and culture. In D. Matsumoto, & H. C. Hwang (Eds.), The handbook of culture and psychology (pp. 235–291). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190679743.003.0009.
Bjorkqvist, K. (2018). Gender differences in aggression. Current Opinion in Psychology, 19, 39–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2017.03.030.
Blain-Arcaro, C., & Vaillancourt, T. (2017). Longitudinal associations between depression and aggression in children and adolescents. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 45(5), 959–970. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-016-0204-2.
Boivin, M., Hymel, S., & Hodges, E. V. E. (2001). Toward a process view of peer rejection and harassment. In J. Juvonen, & S. Graham (Eds.), Peer harassment in school: The plight of the vulnerable and victimized (pp. 265–289). The Guilford.
Buhs, E. S., & Ladd, G. W. (2001). Peer rejection as antecedent of young children’s school adjustment: An examination of mediating processes. Developmental Psychology, 37(4), 550–560. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.37.4.550.
Card, N. A., Stucky, B. D., Sawalani, G. M., & Little, T. D. (2008). Direct and indirect aggression during childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic review of gender differences, intercorrelations, and relations to maladjustment. Child Development, 79(5), 1185–1229. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2008.01184.x.
Casper, D. M., & Card, N. A. (2017). Overt and relational victimization: A meta-analytic review of their overlap and associations with social-psychological adjustment. Child Development, 88(2), 466–483. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12621.
Casper, D. M., Card, N. A., & Barlow, C. (2020). Relational aggression and victimization during adolescence: A meta-analytic review of unique associations with popularity, peer acceptance, rejection, and friendship characteristics. Journal of Adolescence, 80(1), 41–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2019.12.012.
Chen, L., Zhang, W., Ji, L., & Deater-Deckard, K. (2019). Developmental trajectories of Chinese adolescents’ relational aggression: Associations with changes in social-psychological adjustment. Child Development, 90(6), 2153–2170. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13090.
Cho, D., Zatto, B. R. L., & Hoglund, W. L. G. (2022). Forms of peer victimization in adolescence: Covariation with symptoms of depression. Developmental Psychology, 58(2), 392–404. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0001300.
Crick, N. R., & Grotpeter, J. K. (1995). Relational aggression, gender, and social-psychological adjustment. Child Development, 66(3), 710–722. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1995.tb00900.x.
Crick, N. R., & Grotpeter, J. K. (1996). Children’s treatment by peers: Victims of relational and overt aggression. Development and Psychopathology, 8(2), 367–380. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579400007148.
Crick, N. R., Ostrov, J. M., & Kawabata, Y. (2007). Relational aggression and gender: An overview. In D. J. Flannery, A. T. Vazsonyi, & I. D. Waldman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of violent behavior and aggression (pp. 245–259). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511816840.012.
DaSilva, S. M., & Keeler, C. (2017). Adolescent peer victimization and PTSD risk. Adolescent Psychiatry, 7(1), 25–43. https://doi.org/10.2174/2210676606666161121103635.
Espelage, D. L., Merrin, G. J., Hong, J. S., & Resko, S. M. (2018). Applying social cognitive theory to explore relational aggression across early adolescence: A within-and between-person analysis. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47(11), 2401–2413. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-018-0910-x.
Farrell, A. D., Goncy, E. A., Sullivan, T. N., & Thompson, E. L. (2018). Victimization, aggression, and other problem behaviors: Trajectories of change within and across middle school grades. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 28(2), 438–455. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12346.
French, D. C., Jansen, E. A., & Pidada, S. (2002). United States and Indonesian children’s and adolescents’ reports of relational aggression by disliked peers. Child Development, 73(4), 1143–1150. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00463.
Funabiki, Y., & Murai, T. (2017). Standardization of a Japanese version of the youth self-report for school ages 11–18. Japanese Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 58(5), 730–741. https://doi.org/10.20615/jscap.58.5_730.
Geoffroy, M., Boivin, M., Arseneault, L., Turecki, G., Vitaro, F., Brendgen, M., Renaud, J., Séguin, J. R., Tremblay, R. E., & Côté, S. M. (2016). Associations between peer victimization and suicidal ideation and suicide attempt during adolescence: Results from a prospective population-based birth cohort. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 55(2), 99–105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2015.11.010.
Hashimoto, H. (2021). Cross-generational differences in independence and interdependence: Discrepancies between their actual and ideal selves in the Japanese cultural context. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 676526. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.676526.
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118.
Idsoe, T., Vaillancourt, T., Dyregrov, A., Hagen, K. A., Ogden, T., & Nærde, A. (2021). Bullying victimization and trauma. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11, 480353. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.480353.
Ivanova, M. Y., Achenbach, T. M., Rescorla, L. A., Dumenci, L., Almqvist, F., Bilenberg, N., Bird, H., Broberg, A. G., Dobrean, A., Döpfner, M., Erol, N., Forns, M., Hannesdottir, H., Kanbayashi, Y., Lambert, M. C., Leung, P., Minaei, A., Mulatu, M. S., Novik, T., & Verhulst, F. C. (2007). The generalizability of the Youth Self-Report syndrome structure in 23 societies. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 75(5), 729–738. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.75.5.729.
Jenkins, L. N., Miller, H. H., Kaminski, S., & Putzeys, S. (2023). Re-conceptualizing peer victimization as a potentially traumatic event. International Journal of Bullying Prevention, 5, 151–160. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42380-022-00129-7.
Kato, T. A., Kanba, S., & Teo, A. R. (2019). Hikikomori: Multidimensional understanding, assessment, and future international perspectives. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 73(8), 427–440. https://doi.org/10.1111/pcn.12895.
Kawabata, Y. (2018). Relational aggression in a cultural context. In S. M. Coyne, & J. Ostrov (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of relational aggression (pp. 265–280). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190491826.003.0017.
Kawabata, Y., & Onishi, A. (2017). Moderating effects of relational interdependence on the association between peer victimization and depressive symptoms. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 48(2), 214–224. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-016-0634-7.
Kawabata, Y., & Tseng, W. L. (2019). Relational and physical victimization, friendship, and social and school adjustment in Taiwan. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 36(6), 1559–1578. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407518767771.
Kawabata, Y., Crick, N. R., & Hamaguchi, Y. (2010). Forms of aggression, social-psychological adjustment, and peer victimization in a Japanese sample: The moderating role of positive and negative friendship quality. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 38(4), 471–484. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-010-9386-1.
Kawabata, Y., Tseng, W. L., Murray-Close, D., & Crick, N. R. (2012). Developmental trajectories of Chinese children’s relational and physical aggression: Associations with social-psychological adjustment problems. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 40(7), 1087–1097. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-012-9633-8.
Kawabata, Y., Kinoshita, M., & Onishi, A. (2024). A longitudinal study of forms of peer victimization and internalizing problems in adolescence. Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-023-01155-9.
Kuramoto, H., Kanbayashi, Y., Nakata, Y., Fukui, T., Mukai, T., & Negishi, Y. (2002). Standardization of the Japanese Version of the Youth Self Report (YSR). Japanese Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 43(Suppl), 17–32.
Lansford, J. E., Skinner, A. T., Sorbring, E., Giunta, L. D., Deater-Deckard, K., Dodge, K. A., & Chang, L. (2012). Boys’ and girls’ relational and physical aggression in nine countries. Aggressive Behavior, 38(4), 298–308. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21433.
Lee, E. (2009). The relationship of aggression and bullying to social preference: Differences in gender and types of aggression. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 33(4), 323–330. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025408098028.
Li, T. M., & Wong, P. W. (2015). Youth social withdrawal behavior (hikikomori): A systematic review of qualitative and quantitative studies. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 49(7), 595–609. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004867415581179.
Li, T., Chen, B., Li, Q., Wu, X., Li, Y., & Zhen, R. (2023). Association between bullying victimization and post-traumatic stress disorders among Chinese adolescents: A multiple mediation model. BMC Psychiatry, 23(1), 758. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-023-05212-x.
Little, R. J. (1988). A test of missing completely at random for multivariate data with missing values. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 83(404), 1198–1202. https://doi.org/10.1080/01621459.1988.10478722.
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (2020). Considering social security and work styles in Reiwa [White paper]. https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/000735866.pdf.
Murray-Close, D., Nelson, D. A., Ostrov, J. M., Casas, J. F., & Crick, N. R. (2016). Relational aggression: A developmental psychopathology perspective. In D. Cicchetti (Ed.), Developmental psychopathology: Risk, resilience, and intervention (3rd ed., pp. 660–722). John Wiley & Sons, Inc. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119125556.devpsy413.
Ostrov, J. M., & Godleski, S. A. (2010). Toward an integrated gender-linked model of aggression subtypes in early and middle childhood. Psychological Review, 117(1), 233–242. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018070.
Ostrov, J. M., & Godleski, S. A. (2013). Relational aggression, victimization, and adjustment during middle childhood. Development and Psychopathology, 25(3), 801–815. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579413000187.
Ostrov, J. M., Kamper, K. E., Hart, E. J., Godleski, S. A., & Blakely-McClure, S. J. (2014). A gender-balanced approach to the study of peer victimization and aggression subtypes in early childhood. Development and Psychopathology, 26(3), 575–587. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579414000248.
Pomerantz, H., Parent, J., Forehand, R., Breslend, N. L., & Winer, J. P. (2017). Pubertal timing and youth internalizing psychopathology: The role of relational aggression. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26(2), 416–423. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-016-0598-z.
Pozzoli, T., & Gini, G. (2010). Active defending and passive bystanding behavior in bullying: The role of personal characteristics and perceived peer pressure. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 38(6), 815–827. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-010-9399-9.
Preddy, T. M., & Fite, P. J. (2012). Differential associations between relational and overt aggression and children’s psychosocial adjustment. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 34(2), 182–190. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-011-9274-1.
Prinstein, M. J., Boergers, J., & Vernberg, E. M. (2001). Overt and relational aggression in adolescents: Social-psychological adjustment of aggressors and victims. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 30(4), 479–491. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15374424JCCP3004_05.
Rose, A. J., & Rudolph, K. D. (2006). A review of sex differences in peer relationship processes: Potential trade-offs for the emotional and behavioral development of girls and boys. Psychological Bulletin, 132(1), 98–131. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.1.98.
Spieker, S. J., Campbell, S. B., Vandergrift, N., Pierce, K. M., Cauffman, E., Susman, E. J., & NICHD Early Child Care Research Network. (2012). Relational aggression in middle childhood: Predictors and adolescent outcomes. Social Development, 21(2), 354–375. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9507.2011.00631.x.
Steinberg, L., & Morris, A. S. (2001). Adolescent development. Annual Review of Psychology, 52(1), 83–110. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.83.
Tackett, J. L., Daoud, S. L., De Bolle, M., & Burt, S. A. (2013). Is relational aggression part of the externalizing spectrum? A bifactor model of youth antisocial behavior. Aggressive Behavior, 39(2), 149–159. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21466.
Toda, Y., & Kanetsuna, T. (2021). Bullying research and intervention in Japan: Collaborations to tackle bullying in various contexts. In P. K. Smith, & J. O. Norman (Eds.), The Wiley Blackwell handbook of bullying: A comprehensive and international review of research and intervention (pp. 527–546). Wiley Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118482650.ch62.
Umezu, N., Arai, K., & Hamaguchi, Y. (2012). The relationships between relational aggression, cognitive characteristics and adjustment in Japanese junior-high school students: Focusing on hostile attribution. Tsukuba Psychological Research, 44, 69–78.
Zaykowski, H., & Gunter, W. D. (2013). Gender differences in victimization risk: Exploring the role of deviant lifestyles. Violence and Victims, 28(2), 341–356. https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.VV-D-12-00019.
Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., & Duffy, A. L. (2014). Heightened emotional sensitivity intensifies ssociations between relational aggression and victimization among girls but not boys: A longitudinal study. Development and Psychopathology, 26(3), 661–673. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579414000303.
Funding
This study was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant 16K17323.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
All authors made substantial contributions to the present study.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Compliance with ethical standards
All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. The study was approved by Konan University’s Institutional Review Board.
Conflict of interest
The authors have no competing interests to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.
Informed Consent
Informed consent or assent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. Parental consent was sought under the guidance of schools. Consent from school principals was also obtained.
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Electronic Supplementary Material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Kawabata, Y., Onishi, A., Baquiano, M.J. et al. The Pathways from Forms of Aggression and Peer Victimization to Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: A Gender-Informed Analysis. Journ Child Adol Trauma (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40653-024-00622-9
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40653-024-00622-9