Abstract—Objectives: Examine possible differences in patterns of maternal functioning related to physical and indirect types of aggression one year later and to determine whether patterns were gender-related in children. The hypothesized coercion model assumes that maternal emotional distress indirectly influences children’s aggressive behavior through the independent effect of hostile parenting.
Method: Longitudinal analyses were conducted on 110 girls and 115 boys in Grades 1 to 3 (mean age = 7.59, sd = 0.91) attending sociodemographically disadvantaged elementary schools. Mothers provided self-reports of emotional well-being and parenting at T1, and teachers reported on child’s aggression at T1 and T2.
Results: Greater maternal emotional distress predicted teacher-rated sons’ and daughters’ physically aggressive behavior, as well as daughters’ (but not sons’) indirect aggression 12 months later, via hostile parenting.
Conclusion: Findings contribute toward a better understanding of gender role aspects of physical and indirect aggression and their links with dysfunctional parenting behaviors.
Index Terms—Aggression, childhood, gender, hostile parenting.
P. Verlaan and J. Toupin are with the Psychoeducation Department, University of Sherbrooke, Longueuil Campus, Longueuil, QC J4K 0A8 Canada (e-mail: pierrette.verlaan@usherbrooke.ca, jean.toupin@usherbrooke.ca).
M. Déry is with the Psychoeducation Department, University of Sherbrooke, Main Campus, Sherbrooke, QC J1K 2R1 Canada (e-mail: michele.dery@usherbrooke.ca).
Cite: P. Verlaan, M. Déry, and J. Toupin, "Maternal Distress and Hostile Parenting: Impact on Physical and Indirect Aggression in 6 to 9 Years Old Boys and Girls," International Journal of Information and Education Technology vol. 4, no. 3, pp. 221-225, 2014.