Goals and Strategies to Solve Peer Conflict: Comparison by Aggression Trajectories

Abstract

Objective.
Prior research identified three trajectories of adolescent aggressive behavior from Grades 6 to 12:
Low, Medium Desisting, and High Desisting Aggression. This study examined whether youth in these trajectories
differed in their goals and strategies to solve conflict.
Method.
The sample consisted of 620 randomly selected
students participating in the Healthy Teens Longitudinal Study. Participants attended schools in Northeast
Georgia, USA. Mean scores were plotted for the seven years, and analysis of variance was used to examine
whether student endorsement of goals and strategies differed by aggression trajectories.
Results.
Self-reported
student goals and strategies were stable over time. At Grade 6 and 12, significantly more students in the Low
Aggression trajectory endorsed positive goals and strategies to resolve peer conflict, and significantly more
students in the two more aggressive trajectories endorsed aggressive goals and strategies. Youth in the two
more aggressive trajectories did not differ in goals or strategies. Seeking help from a teacher did not vary by
aggression trajectory or grade level.
Conclusion.
Given the stability of goals and strategies, school should
implement programs early to enhance social-cognitive factors affecting students’ behavior in peer conflict
situations, and thus prevent violence and enhance a positive school climate.