Реляционная агрессия у подростков: формы, последствия и влияние на социализацию.

Damaging social interaction
Relational aggression, alternative aggression, or relational bullying is a type of aggression in which harm is caused by damaging someone's relationships or social status. Although it can be used in many contexts and among different age groups, relational aggression among adolescents in particular, has received a lot of attention. The attention relational aggression has received has been augmented by the help of popular media, including movies like Mean Girls and books like Odd Girl Out by Rachel Simmons (2002), Nesthäkchen and the World War by Else Ury (1916), and Queen Bees and Wannabes by R. Wiseman (2003). Relational aggression can have various lifelong consequences. Relational aggression has been primarily observed and studied among girls, following pioneering research by psychologist Nicki R. Crick. Interactions with peers encourage positive practice of autonomy and independent decision making skills. They are also essential for healthy sexual development including the development of the capacity for intimate friendships and learning appropriate sexual behavior. Peer relationships are also very important for determining how much adolescents value school, how much effort they put into it, and how well they perform in class. However, quite frequently adolescents take part in peer relationships that are harmful for their psychological development. Adolescents tend to form various cliques and belong to different crowds based on their activity interests, music and clothing preferences, as well as their cultural or ethnic background. Such groups differ in their sociometric or popularity status, which often create unhealthy, aggression victimization based dynamics between groups. Different forms of aggression can also be used to control dynamics and sociometric status within a group. Sometimes aggression is directed to an individual rather than to any apparent social group. Primary reasons for victimization include looks and speech; adolescents are also frequently bullied because of a disability, particular ethnicity, or religion.

Relational aggression is defined as a type of aggression that is "intended to harm others through deliberate manipulation of their social standing and relationships". Relational aggression, according to Daniel Olweus is a type of bullying. Bullying in general, is defined as physically or psychologically violent re occurring and not provoked acts, where the bully and victim have unequal physical strength or psychological power. These key conditions apply to all types of bullying: verbal, physical and relational. It can be proactive (planned and goal oriented) or reactive (in response to perceived threats, hostility, or anger), and it can be, for instance, peer directed or romantic.

Although it can be used by both genders, relational aggression is more commonly associated with girls. Findings of a study by Rivers and Smith have shown that while verbal aggression occurs with similar frequency in both sexes, direct physical aggression is more common among boys and indirect aggression is more common among girls. In another study by Baldry it was found that boys are more likely to engage in bullying behaviors such as threats, physical harm, rejection, and name calling, while girls are most likely to use name calling, teasing, rumors, rejection, and taking personal belongings. Based on these findings, girls do seem to use relational aggression more than boys. In addition, recent international research shows that both genders tend to use relational aggression, but girls are more aware and distressed by it. For example, a study by Horn found that girls are more likely to say that it is morally wrong to exclude someone based on their crowd membership. Some research shows that there are certain implications when boys and girls engage in gender atypical aggression, as girls who are more physically aggressive or boys who are highly relationally aggressive are more maladjusted than their peers.

Sociometric status, commonly referred as popularity, is one of the most significant predictors of victimization or bullying as differences in popularity can be associated with differences in social power. It is commonly believed that aggressive adolescents belong to rejected social groups. However, some research shows that they can be popular among their peers. Rodkin et al. (2000), for example, describes two types of popular boys: "model" boys, who are "physically and academically competent, friendly and neither shy nor aggressive." Instrumental aggression is defined as behavior that is deliberate and planned while reactive aggression is unplanned and impulsive. found that both victims and bullies normally come from rejected groups. Bullies choose to bully students who are members of their social out groups that are similar to their own in group as a result of threatened distinctiveness. Hence, the need to maintain a unique social identity and status can be one of the causes to engage in bullying. Using relational aggression to maintain a particular social order inside the group has been mostly observed in girl groups: if some member of the group becomes too popular and this causes imbalance in the group, other members might start rumors about the overly popular girl to diminish her status. Amanda Rose (2004) claims that the main purpose of using relational aggression in first place is to enhance or maintain one's social status. Many skills that are needed to be popular are also essential for being "successful" at employing relational aggression, e. g. ability to "read" people and adjust one's behavior accordingly, etc. First type includes adolescents who are overly aggressive: they tend to get into fights, get involved in antisocial activities, and are often involved in bullying; second type includes adolescents who are withdrawn or timid and exceedingly shy and inhibited and who are more likely to be victims; third aggressive withdrawn type adolescents tend to have trouble controlling their hostility, but they are also very shy and nervous about initiating friendships. The latter are likely to be bully victims. Other students bystanders can also choose between several roles: victim defender, bully reinforcer or assistant, and outsiders.

Victims or the unpopular withdrawn children are excessively anxious, lack social skills needed to initiate new contacts or break into a group activity. Their lack of confidence combined with submissiveness make them perfect targets for bullying. Some of the most common underlying reasons for bullying include low socioeconomic status, disability, and obesity. Research shows that in comparison with other adolescents victims often use worse problem solving strategies. They often score less than their bullies and defenders in the tests of moral competence and theory of mind. Moral competence refers to the ability to carefully consider both the consequences and prior beliefs in determining how morally right or wrong one's actions are. Victims seemed to focus primarily on the outcomes and not being as good in integrating the moral beliefs. They have difficulties in social skills, and social problem solving, as well as emotional regulation. And because of their lack of social competence, victims score low on peer acceptance and popularity. Victims are often overly sensitive to being rejected, which might originate in their relationships with parents.

Bullies, despite being quite morally competent, tend to engage in morally wrong behaviors because of several reasons, including a lack of moral compassion. which can cause the perpetuation of their aggressive behaviors.

Bully victims are people who have both experienced aggression directed towards them and have themselves engaged in bullying. They often choose to be bully assistants or reinforcers. Seeing others victimized can serve as a buffer against some psychological problems, for which these people are at risk (see consequences of victimization below). In comparison to all other groups, bully victims are the worst off regarding their psychological adjustment and problems. They are least liked among the peers. Although early research has mostly focused on victims and bullies, currently more and more attention has been given to the roles of other students, or bystanders: bully reinforcer's and assistants, victim defenders, and outsiders.

Bully reinforcers and assistants do not normally initiate aggressive actions themselves, but they support, reinforce, and assist the bully. They often have rather large friendship networks when compared to outsiders, victims, and their defenders. These individuals are similar to bullies in regards of their personal characteristics. Female bully reinforcers and assistants usually score low on social acceptance and high on rejection by their peers while male bully assistants have average scores on both and bully reinforcers are often quite popular among their peers.

Outsiders are adolescents who like to stay away from the conflict situations, participate in spreading rumors, or actively support either side. They usually befriend other outsiders. Both male and female outsiders usually score below average on both social acceptance and rejection by their peers. However, in general they will take the side of the bully or victim based on who they know better. Bullies are more likely to be friends of other bullies, as well as their reinforcers, and assistants, while victims befriend other victims.

There are differences in consequences among the children who are rejected and aggressive, also known as bully victims, and children who are rejected and withdrawn, also referred to as simply victims. Aggressive individuals often have conduct problems and are involved in antisocial activity. Withdrawn children feel exceedingly lonely, at risk of low self esteem, depression, and diminished social competence. Adolescents who are both aggressive and withdrawn are at greatest risk for various mental and behavioral problems.

Although victims respond to bullying in various ways, some of the most common ways include avoidance or escape behaviors, such as not going to school and running away from home. However, in some extreme cases, suicide attempts might occur. Compared to non victims, victims exhibit increased levels of suicidal ideation. and are more likely to have attempted suicide. Researcher Y. S. Kim (2005) According to Brustein and Klomek (2007), found that severe ideation was associated with frequent victimization only among girls.

Some adolescents are more resilient to victimization due to their personal characteristics, but there are some environmental factors such as having a best friend or great family support can decrease the risk for many negative consequences associated with victimization. In addition, research shows that support from teachers can be a significant environmental factor for higher academic achievement and school engagement. It can also increase general well being in the classroom. Teacher attitudes towards bullying were found to moderate the extent to which victims internalize and feel distressed and express it by avoiding school and similar behavior. Close teacher student relationship moderates perceived safety in the classroom, and higher perceived safety is directly linked to better classroom concentration and improved coping strategies. Therefore, supportive friends, family, and teachers can be great buffers for victimized students against all negative effects of victimization. Witnessing the harassment of others can also reduce some harmful effects of being victimized: victims only feel more humiliated and angry than victims witnesses on the same day. Being singled out and picked on feels worse than being one of many victimized students. This explains why in ethnically diverse schools victimized students experience worse psychological outcomes when their ethnic group is in majority, because then they are more likely to attribute it to their personal shortcomings and not to their group membership.

Stauffacher, K. & DeHart, G. B. "Crossing social contexts: Relational aggression between siblings and friends during early and middle childhood." Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology