Citation

Loeber R, Tengs T. J. Fam. Violence 1986; 1(1): 51-70.

Affiliation

Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, 15213 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Copyright

(Copyright © 1986, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/BF00977032

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The study examines coercive episodes observed between young children, siblings, and their mothers in two samples of families. One sample consisted of aggressive children, the other of nonaggressive children. Aggressive children initiated more coercive chains, especially when the mother and the sibling had been acting neutrally, and engaged in longer chains than normal children. The longest coercive chain occurred when sibling conflict took place in the aggressive group. Findings showed the level of coercive behavior within chains was a function of the initiator of the chain. The initiator had substantially higher levels of negative behavior throughout the chain, compared to the level shown by the recipients of the chains. This held across both samples. Moreover, the initiator was more likely than the recipient to terminate the chain by displaying the last negative response.