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The Developmental Dynamics of Aggression and the Prevention of School Violence

Pennsylvania State University, twf2{at}psu.edu

Elizabeth M.Z. Farmer

Pennsylvania State University

David B. Estell

Indiana University

Bryan C. Hutchins

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The authors consider school violence from a dynamic systems conceptualization of aggression. This perspective suggests that aggression and school violence involve the contributions of both school social dynamics and the developmental histories of youth who are at risk for involvement in antisocial behavior. The authors present the concept of correlated constraints to describe the systematic alignment of developmental factors and their role in behavioral continuity and realignment. Building from this perspective, the authors present a theoretical framework that complements public health models of prevention to guide the establishment of comprehensive programs for preventing aggressive and violent behavior in schools. This framework suggests that three distinct but complementary levels of intervention are required to effectively reduce school violence: (a) universal strategies to address contextual factors, including the social dynamics of aggression and the activities of "conventional" peers that promote interpersonal conflict; (b) selective strategies for supporting the strengths of at-risk youth to prevent the negative reorganization of their developmental systems; and (c) indicated strategies involving coordinated services from multiple providers to reorganize the developmental systems of high-risk youth (i.e., youth with emotional and behavioral disorders).

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