|
Abstract
|
Two hundred seventy-two high school juniors and seniors were surveyed regarding their experiences as victims and perpetrators of sibling violence and agonistic interactions with their closest-spaced siblings. Findings support earlier reports that siblings engage in a variety of violent acts directed toward one another and that there are few differences between males and females as to the extent of the behaviors. Subjects reported experiences of negative physical and verbal interactions less frequently than did younger subjects in previous studies, suggesting the need to further examine age-related differences in sibling violence. Discussion focuses on the implications of the present findings and direction for future studies in this area.
VioLit summary:
OBJECTIVE:
The objective of this study by Godwin and Roscoe was to determine: (1) what events or situations led to altercations between middle adolescent siblings, (2) what types of violent behaviors and agonistic exchanges occurred between siblings, (3) what were the methods of conflict resolution used between siblings, (4) what was relationship of the sex of the sibling pair to the types of conflict that occurred, and (5) how did these results compare to those for early adolescents.
METHODOLOGY:
This was a quasi-experimental, cross-sectional survey of 272 public high school students ranging from 16-19 years old. All students in the required class participated by filling out a questionnaire where they reported negative interactions and conflict resolution strategies with their closest-spaced sibling within the past year. Results from the few students who did not have a sibling were discarded. Therefore, only descriptive and nonparametric statistical techniques (chi-square tests) were used for data analysis. Minimal differences were found for demographic variables. Findings relative to the total sample, separated by sex, were presented. All correlations were accurate to p<.05, with most being accurate to p<.01. The results were compared to those from a Roscoe et al. (1987) study.
FINDINGS/DISCUSSION:
Sources of conflict that were specified significantly more often by females than males were jealousy and special treatment by parents and the greatest sources of conflict in female-to-female dyads was wearing each other's clothes. In male-to-male pairs, touching and harassing one another was most often cited as the source of conflict. Name calling, making fun of a sibling or something a sibling did, and teasing were the most frequently cited agonistic interactions between siblings. More females than males cited being made fun of and being teased, and more males than females threatened to harm their siblings and were less likely to tell parents about the interaction. Negative, nonphysical interactions between siblings were the same regardless of whether the subject was the victim or perpetrator. Teasing most frequently occurred in female-to-male dyads, while threatening to harm a sibling most often occurred in male-to-male dyads. The least amount of teasing occured in male-to-male pairs, and the least amount of name calling in male-to-female pairs. Sixty-five percent of females and 64% of males perpetrated physical violence against a sibling, while 64% of females and 66% of males were victims of violence. The most common acts for both perpetrators and victims were pushing/shoving/pulling, throwing an object, hitting with a fist, and hitting with an object. More male victims were hit with an object or hit with a fist than female victims. More male perpetrators than female perpetrators hit with an object, hit with a fist, smothered with a pillow, held a sibling against his or her will, beat up, choked, or threw a sibling. The majority of hitting with a fist occurred in male-to-male dyads and scratching in female-to-female dyads. Hollering/screaming/yelling/arguing, ignoring, compromising, and talking were the primary methods of resolving conflict. More females used hollering/screaming/yelling/arguing and ignoring while more males used physical force. Ignoring was least often used in male-to-male dyads, while physical force was most often used in male dyads. Overall, more similarities in violent behaviors were found than differences across dyads. Both male and female middle adolescents used physical force less often and had fewer negative interactions often than young adolescents. The conflict resolution methods were similar.
AUTHORS' RECOMMENDATIONS:
The authors stated that further study is needed to understand the causes, frequency or occurrence, and types of negative interactions and how they change throughout childhood. (CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado)
KW - Domestic Violence Causes
KW - Juvenile Offender
KW - Juvenile Violence
KW - Juvenile Victim
KW - Senior High School Student
KW - Late Adolescence
KW - Sibling Violence Offender
KW - Sibling Violence Victim
KW - Domestic Violence Victim
KW - Sibling Violence Causes
KW - Gender Differences
KW - Male Violence
KW - Male Offender
KW - Male Victim
KW - Female Violence
KW - Female Offender
KW - Female Victim
KW - Family Conflict
KW - Juvenile Female
KW - Juvenile Male
KW - Conflict Resolution
Language: en |