A Biosocial investigation of child maltreatment and testosterone in children’s aggression

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Rochester. Dept. of Clinical and Social Psychology, 2008.Aggressive behavior during the school-age years was investigated with particular interest in the interplay of risk factors from multiple developmental domains, including experiences of childhood maltreatment and the influence of testosterone. Children between the ages of 6 and 13 years with a history of physical maltreatment or physical neglect (n = 175), or no known maltreatment history (n = 209) were included as participants. The direct and interactive influences of maltreatment history and testosterone on the expression of various forms of aggression and social dominance were examined. Results indicated that children who had been maltreated were significantly more likely to exhibit multiple forms of aggression, including overt aggression, bullying, and relational aggression, but did not differ in basal testosterone levels or diurnal variation. Initial findings did not indicate a relationship between testosterone and either aggression or non-aggressive social dominance. However, when maltreatment was included as a moderating factor, testosterone was a positive predictor of non-aggressive social dominance in non-maltreated children and a negative predictor of aggression in maltreated children. Gender did not moderate the identified relationships, which also were generally consistent when participants were split into middle childhood (6-9 years) versus pubescent (10-13 years) groups. Findings are discussed with regard to the importance of utilizing a bio-behavioral approach in investigations of normal and abnormal child development