A Comparison of Social Development Processes Leading to Violent Behavior in Late Adolescence for Childhood Initiators and Adolescent Initiators of Violence

Abstract

This study used data from the Seattle Social Development Project (SSDP) to compare social developmental mechanisms predictive of violence at age 18 for youth who initiated violence in childhood and those who initiated violence during adolescence. The SSDP is a theory-guided longitudinal study of youth development and behavior, which has followed a panel of children since they entered the fifth grade in 1985. A multiple-group structural equation modeling approach was used to test relationships among social development model constructs hypothesized to predict violence and other forms of antisocial behavior. Analyses revealed that during adolescence, socialization pathways leading to violence at age 18 were similar for those who initiated violence in childhood and those who initiated violence in adolescence, suggesting that during adolescence, the same preventive interventions may be effective for individuals in both groups.

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