Self-control and aggression versatility: moderating effects in the prediction of delinquency and conduct disorder among youth

• Main Author: Pechorro, Pedro
• Publication Date: 2021
• Other Authors: Marsee, Monica, DeLisi, Matt, Maroco, João
• Format: Article
• Language: eng
• Source: Repositórios Científicos de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (RCAAP)
• Download full: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.12/8343
• topic: Aggression; Delinquency; Moderation; Self-control; Youth; Conduct disorder

An individual’s capacity for self-control is an important factor when considering the link between aggression and delinquency outcomes. The aim of the present study is to examine the possible role of self-control as a moderator of the aggression-antisociality/delinquency link among a sample of 567 youth (M = 15.91 years, SD = .99 years, age range = 14–18 years) from Portugal. Results indicated that self-control significantly moderates four different forms and functions of aggression – proactive overt, proactive relational, reactive overt, and reactive relational – in models simultaneously predicting delinquency and conduct disorder outcomes. We encourage multifaceted study of aggression as inherent in the Peer Conflict Scale-20 to articulate the ways that various forms of aggression unfold into clinical conduct problems.