NCJ Number
219704
Journal
Child Maltreatment Volume: 12 Issue: 3 Dated: August 2007 Pages: 281-298
Date Published
August 2007
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This literature review examines how child maltreatment influences the development of aggression.
Abstract
The review proposes that features of cognitive, emotional, and neurological development mediate the relationship between childhood maltreatment and the development of aggression. In addition, it suggests that physical abuse and neglect may have different effects on a youth's development. Physical abuse may result in hypervigilance to physical threats and distorted perceptions of hostile threats. Neglect, on the other hand, may result in difficulties with the regulation of emotion because of a lack of emotional interactions. These processes may be "hardwired" into neural networks through the overactivation of certain brain regions and dysfunctional cognitive processes. The theoretical and speculative nature of the propositions derived from this review are intended to foster hypotheses for future research regarding the mechanisms by which aggressive behavior evolves from the experience of and reactions to childhood maltreatment. Such research is critical, because only when the adverse effects of maltreatment on brain and cognitive development are understood can policymakers and practitioners alter the developmental pathway to aggression. 37 references