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Relationships between Social Information Processing and Aggression among Adolescent Girls with and without ADHD

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Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between social information processing (SIP) and both relational and overt, physical aggression in a longitudinally-followed sample of 228 adolescent girls (ages 11–18; 140 with ADHD and 88 comparison girls). During childhood, girls participated in naturalistic summer camps where peer rejection, overt physical aggression, and relational aggression were assessed via multiple informants and methods. Approximately 4.5 years later, these girls participated in follow-up assessments during which they completed a commonly-used vignette procedure to assess SIP; overt and relational aggression were again assessed through multiple informants. Correlations between (a) overt and relational aggression and (b) maladaptive SIP were modest in this female adolescent sample. However, relationships between aggression and SIP were stronger for the comparison girls than for the girls with ADHD. The relevance of SIP models for adolescent girls and clinical implications of findings are discussed.

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Acknowledgements

Work on this research was supported by National Institute of Mental Health Grant R01 MH45064. We express our great appreciation to the girls and their families who participated in this project and the many individuals who assisted with data collection and data management, especially Elizabeth Owens, Grace Hanna Brown, Megan Sutter Jow, and Brian Louie.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, 102 Gilmer Hall, P.O. Box 400400, Charlottesville, VA, 22904-4400, USA

    Amori Yee Mikami

  2. Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, 1285 Franz Hall, Box 951563, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA

    Steve S. Lee

  3. Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, 3210 Tolman Hall, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA

    Stephen P. Hinshaw & Benjamin C. Mullin

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  1. Amori Yee Mikami
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  2. Steve S. Lee
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Correspondence to Amori Yee Mikami.

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Mikami, A.Y., Lee, S.S., Hinshaw, S.P. et al. Relationships between Social Information Processing and Aggression among Adolescent Girls with and without ADHD. J Youth Adolescence 37, 761–771 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-007-9237-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-007-9237-8

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