Early Experience Stress and Aggressive Behavior Alexandra Thiel

Early Experience, Stress, and Aggressive Behavior Alexandra Thiel, Angela Kurth, Kallie Renfus, Daniella Grover, Darcia Narvaez INTRODUCTION Using a newly validated measure of moral action based on triune ethics theory, the Past Action Report (PAR; Narvaez, Thiel, Kurth & Renfus, in press), we examined selfprotectionist moral behavior and its relationship to early experience and stress. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Table 1. Descriptive Statistics Variable (Possible Study 1 (n= 199) Range) Mean (SD); alpha (α) Study 2 (n= 295) Mean (SD); alpha (α) PAST ACTION REPORT Social Opposition (1019. 00 (10. 50); α= 21. 72 (11. 58); α= The General Aggression Model (GAM; De. Wall, Anderson & 90). 92 Bushman, 2011) describes how thoughts (e. g. , attributions), Social Withdrawal (8 - 30. 90 (13. 61); α= 29. 52 (13. 33); α= . 91. 90 feelings, arousal, and behavior are interrelated and alone or 72) Social Weakness (4 -36) 11. 29 (6. 58); α= 10. 29 (5. 45); α= together can influence aggressive tendencies in particular. 85. 79 Sense of Superiority (39. 52 (4. 69); α= 9. 18 (4. 48); α=. 63 situations. GAM studies demonstrate interactions between 27). 70 individual and situational factors. For example, individuals are Vicious Imagination (5 - 10. 34 (6. 00); α= 31. 05 (16. 78); α= . 84 primed for aggression based on experience (hunters primed 45) Detached Imagination 27. 83 (10. 17); α= 26. 97 (10. 38); α= for aggression when exposed to weapons) or personality (7 -63). 78 30. 56 (8. 77); α= 30. 91 (10. 65); α= disorder (narcissists act aggressively after provocation). We Engagement/ Communal Imagination. 83. 90 think that childhood experiences when stress response (7 -63) EARLY LIFE EXPERIENCE systems are being established influence the type of moral Positive Home Climate 12. 23 (4. 08); α= 12. 55 (3. 79); α= orientation one develops. (4 -20). 88. 83 Negative Home Climate 12. 23 (5. 70); α= 12. 40 (5. 25); α= We expected that early experience that matches up with the (6 -35). 92. 89 Supportive Childhood 10. 38 (3. 41); α= 10. 59 (3. 14); α= Evolved Developmental Niche History (EDN-H; Narvaez, . 93. 89 Wang & Cheng, 2015) which represents the type of evolved (3 -15) Family Togetherness (2 - 6. 78 (2. 02); r = 6. 74 (2. 00); r =. 65 caregiving practices that evolved to match the maturational 10). 71 2. 92 (1. 22); α= 3. 15 (1. 25); α= schedule of a child (e. g. , positive support, positive climate). Affection (1 -5) N/A We expected that the EDN-H would have an effect on whether Corporal Punishment (1 2. 51 (1. 24); α= 2. 58 (1. 17); α= -5) N/A an individual develops aggressive orientations to others. Play (2 -10) 6. 97 (1. 83); r = 7. 17 (2. 00); r =. 63. 56 Based on triune ethics theory (Narvaez, 2008 , 2014), we EDN-history composite 30. 54 (7. 38); α= 31. 07 (6. 76); α= expected that early experience would be correlated with self- (9 -45). 88. 82 ATTACHMENT (CRQ) protective ethical action and self-protective ethical orientations. Secure (1 -7) 3. 84 (2. 16); α= 3. 82 (2. 16); α= We expected that early experience would be related to stress N/A Figures & 2. Mediation Dismissing 1 (1 -7) 3. 92 (2. 05); α= 4. 02 (2. 01); α= reactivity, which would mediate the relation between early N/A Analyses experience and self-protective aggressive action. Preoccupied (1 -7) 2. 70 (1. 79); α= 2. 78 (1. 73); α= N/A Fearful (1 -7) 4. 19 (2. 00); α= 4. 16 (1. 92); α= N/A Participants: Study 1: 199 adults (Mage = 35. 21, SD = 10. 89; ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY 42% female; 84% White Euro-American), Study 2: 295 adults Personal Distress (7 -35) N/A 17. 45 (6. 12); α= . 88 (Mage = 35; 47. 5% female; 75% White Euro-American), Aggression (12 -80) N/A 26. 79 (9. 23); α= recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk. . 88 MORAL ORIENTATION (TRIUNE ETHICS) MEASURES Bunker (5 -25) 8. 70 (4. 36); α= 9. 54 (4. 91); α=. 94. 95 Moral Action: Past Action Report (PAR) which measures Wallflower (5 -25) 10. 22 (4. 68); α= 10. 48 (4. 38); α= behavior from the past year, based in triune ethics theory. We. 92. 89 Engagement (5 -25) 19. 50 (3. 97); α= 19. 83 (3. 64); α= used opposition, withdrawal, and planful aggression. . 92. 90 Communal Imagination 17. 69 (4. 54); α= 18. 59 (4. 39); α= Childhood Experience: Evolved Developmental Niche (5 -25). 92. 93 History (Narvaez et al. , 2014) assesses childhood experience, Vicious Imagination (5 - 8. 47 (3. 86); α= 8. 89 (4. 21); α=. 93 25). 94 including responsivity, positive and negative touch, positive Detached Imagination 2. 09 (. 94); α=. 91 2. 02 (. 94); α=. 91 METHOD and negative climate. Attachment. We used the Close Relationships Questionnaire (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991) to measure attachment. Perceived Stress Reactivity Scale (Rodrigues, Saslow, Garcia, John, & Keltner, 2009) measures perceived stress reactivity. Trait Aggression: Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (Bryant, & Smith, 2001). Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1983) assesses Table 2. Correlations Variable Social Opposition (n= 10) Social Vicious Withdraw Imaginatio al n(n=5) (n= 8) EARLY LIFE EXPERIENCE (EDN-History) Positive Home Climate (n=4) Study 1 Study 2 Negative Home Climate (n=6) Study 1 Study 2 Supportive Childhood (n=3) Study 1 Study 2 Family Togetherness (n=2) Study 1 Study 2 Affection (n=1) Study 1 Study 2 Corporal Punishment (n=1) Study 1 Study 2 Play (n=3) Study 1 Study 2 EDN-history Composite (n=9) Study 1 Study 2 -. 106 -. 038 . 187** . 338** -. 090 -. 045 -. 016 -. 052 . 048 . 032 . 233** . 201** -. 139 -. 065 -. 117 -. 084 -. 403** -. 164**. 439** . 318** -. 259** -. 141* -. 168* -. 080 -. 175* -. 047. 127. 159** -. 286** -. 119* -. 287** -. 160** -. 190** -. 002 . 204**. 303** -. 115 -. 004 -. 040 -. 061 -. 065 . 062 . 177*. 196** -. 191* -. 043 -. 163* -. 055 ATTACHMENT Secure (n=1) Study 1 y 2 Dismissing (n=1) Study 1 y 2 Preoccupied (n=1) Study 1 y 2 Fearful (n=1) Study 1 y 2 -. 047 -. 436** -. 136* Stud-. 380**. 198** . 191** . 438** Stud. 411** . 270** . 131. 197** Stud. 104 -. 026 . 155** . 147* Stud. 248** -. 136 -. 125*. 198** . 167**. 270** . 224** -. 026 . 200** . 224**b . 579**b . 287**b. 308**b We conducted several mediation analyses to examine whether stress reactivity mediated the relation between early experience and self-protective morality. • The relationship between negative home climate in childhood and opposition behavior was partially mediated by perceived stress (direct effect: b = 0. 53, p <. 01; indirect effect: b = 0. 21, p <. 05; 95% bias corrected bootstrap confidence interval [0. 08, 0. 48]; R 2 = 0. 194). • The relationship between negative home climate in childhood and withdrawal behavior was partially mediated by perceived stress (direct effect: b = 1. 63, p <. 01; indirect effect: b = 0. 05, p <. 05; 95% bias corrected bootstrap confidence interval [0. 15, 0. 39]; R 2 = 0. 72). • The relationship between negative home climate in childhood and planful aggression was tested for mediation. While the overall model was significant, the path from perceived stress to planful aggression was only marginally significant (p =. 06) (direct effect: b =. 262, p <. 01; indirect effect: b = 0. 03, p =. 08; 95% bias corrected bootstrap confidence interval [0. 01, 0. 7]; R 2 = 0. 13). (not depicted in figures) CONCLUSION ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY Personal Distress (n=7) Aggression (n=12) See Table 1 for descriptive statistics and Table 2 for correlations. See Figures 1 and 2 for mediation analyses. Correlations largely followed our predictions. • Reported aggressive actions were correlated with childhood experiences. • Self-protectionist moral behaviors were correlated with negative attachment styles. • Antisocial personality variables were correlated with selfprotectionist action. . 238**b . 479**b We predicted and found that reports of past aggression would correlate with self-protective triune ethics orientations. We predicted and found that reports of negative childhood experience would predict self-protective ethical orientations and self-protective ethical actions. These findings support Triune Ethics Theory (Narvaez, 2008) and Evolved Moral Developmental Systems Theory (Narvaez, 2014), which emphasizes the dynamic development of bio-morality according to evolutionary inheritances. ETHICAL ORIENTATION (Triune Ethics) Social Opposition (n=5) Study 1 Study 2 Social Withdrawal (n=5) Study 1 Study 2 Engagement (n=5) Study 1 Study 2 Communal Imagination (n=5) Study 1 Study 2 . 414**. 316**. 112 . 176** -. 134 -. 151** -. 155** . 079. 002 . 396*. 347** . 350**. 122 ** p <. 01, * p <. 05. 350**. 210** -. 235** -. 178* -. 022 -. 146* -. 292** -. 151** -. 210** -. 129* FUTURE DIRECTIONS Diverse samples need to be collected and tested. Longitudinal data that measures parenting but also trauma (e. g. , bullying) would also be beneficial to collect. Finding out which-stressors-when lead to an aggressive stance would be vital for developing interventions. Contact Information: dnarvaez@nd. edu